Author Description

This classic work is an inquiry into the social, mental and religious evolution of early Europe. Written in 1904, it reflects the intellectual interest of the time in the origins and growth of language, mythology, religion and society as exemplified by Max Muller who encouraged the author to undertake this study. Jones begins by examining the dominant position held by Greece and Italy in human history and the conditions necessary to progress, going on to survey the development in early Europe of the material and immaterial elements that make up civilization such as migration, environment, the introduction of metals, hunting and pastoral life, agriculture, family, the treatment of women, slavery, government, law, warfare and religion, drawing parallels with other cultures, notably those of India and the Slavic regions. The book is meticulously organised, with explanatory notes and a full index. Displaying the universalism associated with the social and cultural context in which it was written, this volume is once again timely as the prospect of a single European state forces a reconsideration of Europe's nationalistic boundaries, and reintroduces the idea of a shared European heritage.