The Archaeology of Greater London

Book excerpt: It is nearly 25 years since the last major survey of the archaeology of the London region was written. In that quarter-century some of the most extraordinary evidence of our past has come to light: a 9,000-year-old hunting camp in Uxbridge, a 2-mile-long prehistoric bank-and-ditch cursus monument at Stanwell, the spectacular Roman heart of the City, the Saxon trading emporium on the Strand, the largest medieval cemetery excavated in Europe at Spitalfields, and Shakespeare's Rose Theatre at Bankside. This book, completed with the substantial support of English Heritage and the City of London Archaeological Trust, represents the latest and most comprehensive attempt to place these treasures in their context. It also draws together the knowledge of specialists and experts to provide a framework within which future archaeological discoveries and research may be considered. The result is an accessible and fascinating insight into the rich diversity of human experience that has combined over the last half-million years into the metropolis of Greater London today.The Archaeology of Greater London is presented in 10 period-based chapters, with 13 accompanying full-colour maps and an extensive bibliography and gazetteer of sites end finds.