1. Why Africa, Why Islands?
2. The Multitude of Isles
3. Arriving
4. Altering
5. Being
6. Colonizing and Resisting
7. Island Archaeology: The African Contribution
Biography
Peter Mitchell is Professor of African Archaeology at Oxford University, Tutor and Fellow in Archaeology at St Hugh’s College, Oxford, and Research Associate of the Rock Art Research Institute, University of the Witwatersrand. Former President of the Society of Africanist Archaeologists, he has written widely on African archaeology and related topics
"As far as this reviewer is aware, this is the first book to treat the archaeology of the circum-African islands as a coherent whole. It does so expertly and comprehensively. Mitchell is one of the few scholars qualified to write a book of this type, moving as it does across enormous swathes of space and time and drawing on various traditions of archaeology and theoretical perspectives. The result is a major contribution to African archaeology, with relevance far beyond the continent." Thomas P. Leppard - Journal of African Archaeology
"Overall, the book effectively illustrates the value of archaeological research on African islands, highlighting the rich and variable material record of people’s engagement with islands around the continent, as well as possibilities for future research. The book’s many examples of existing and potential research on African islands are analysed through comparisons with other African islands and, more broadly, with other island regions. This approach provides a comprehensive overview of current research on African islands and offers Africanist archaeologists and Island archaeologists alike exciting opportunities to reimagine their current research." Eréndira M. Quintana Morales, Antiquity
This book is Winner of the SAfA Book Prize 2023.
“…with this book, Mitchell has leapfrogged African islands into prominence, which must surely bode well for new research across this vast, dynamic, and culturally varied maritime space, encompassing two oceans.” Krish Seetah - The African Archaeological Review
