Palaeolithic societies have been a neglected topic in the discussion of human origins. But in the past forty years archaeologists have recovered a wealth of information from Palaeolithic sites throughout the European continent that reveal many illuminating facets of social life over this 500,000-year period. Clive Gamble, introducing a new approach to this material, interrogates the data for information on the scale of social interaction, and the forms of social existence. The result is a reconstruction of ancient human societies, and a fresh perspective on the unique experience of human beings. 'This book is essentially a 'state of the art', a synthesis of work which has been done during the past four decades on European Palaeolithic history. As such, the very extensive bibliography is particularly valuable.' Kleio Clive Gamble's overview of Palaeolithic societies, building on his The Palaeolithic Settlement of Europe (1986). Used Book in Good Condition