Driven by the Monsoons

Once again Barry Cunliffe brings his archaeological and historical expertise to bear on maritime spaces, the Indian Ocean and the seas off China, that have been sailed intensively for thousands of years. The story of these seas is the story of how Asia, Africa, and then Europe became connected, first through trade and migration, and then through conquest. It is also the story of cultural interactions, as religious ideas moved east and as silk and spices moved west. * David Abulafia, Professor Emeritus of Mediterranean History in the University of Cambridge and Fellow of Gonville and Caius College *
This is a lovely book, well-illustrated and joining up lots of dynasties and different forces playing out across time, both physically and geopolitically. * Simon Cocking, Irish Tech News *
Barry Cunliffe is one of the most distinguished archaeologists of his generation. … Turning these pages is in itself almost an entire education given the vast range of material and insights that Cunliffe utilises. The essential point is that history, whether the actors wish it or not, is driven by the forces of geography far more than by social matters. The brute facts of the natural world are more formative than many allow. * Peter Costello, The Irish Catholic *
Cunliffe is not just the doyen of British archaeology; he is the discipline personified…. [Driven by the Monsoons] is a triumph of multum in parvo. Cunliffe manages to cover almost everything: the nature of the winds and currents, the experiences of sailors, the designs of ships, the methods of navigation, the tug of trade and the omnipresence of politics. * Felipe Fernandez Armesto, Literary Review *
Veteran archaeologist Barry Cunliffe’s book embraces an exceptionally complex and often speculative subject: the lucrative connections, mostly by sea, between cultures around China and the Indian Ocean, from prehistoric times to the emergence of European trading companies in around 1600. He recounts vivid details, such as how black peppercorns from India’s Malabar coast were found up the nose of the mummified Egyptian Pharaoh Ramesses II (1303–1213 bc). * Andrew Robinson, Nature *
…a masterly survey of the Indian Ocean … Barry Cunliffe is a distinguished guide to this complex theatre of early globalization. The Indian Ocean’s early history is well served by this beautifully illustrated volume. * Sujit Sivasundaram, Times Literary Supplement *

Barry Cunliffe taught archaeology at the Universities of Bristol and Southampton. He was Professor of European Archaeology at the University of Oxford from 1972 to 2008, and subsequently became Emeritus Professor.

He has conducted numerous excavations in Britain (including Fishbourne, Bath, Danebury, Hengistbury Head, and Brading) and in the Channel Islands, Brittany, and Spain.

Cunliffe has held leadership positions in several prominent organizations:

• President of the Council for British Archaeology
• President of the Society of Antiquaries
• Governor of the Museum of London
• Trustee of the British Museum
• Commissioner of English Heritage (2005-2013)

His extensive publications include:

• The Ancient Celts (1997, second edition 2018)
• Facing the Ocean (2001)
• The Druids: A Very Short Introduction (2010)
• Britain Begins (2012)
• By Steppe, Desert, and Ocean (2015)
• The Scythians (2019)
• Facing the Sea of Sand (2023)

He was knighted in 2006.

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