History of Civilizations of Central Asia
Volume I - The dawn of civilization: earliest times to 700 B.C.
Readers will discover through this six-volume work
cultures that flourished and vanished from the dawn of
civilization to the present time and how the history of the
ancient and medieval world was shaped by the movements of
peoples in this heartland of Eurasia, stretching from the
Caspian Sea to the borders of China.
Editors
A. H. Dani, Emeritus Professor, Quaid-i Azam University Islamabad, Pakistan
V. M. Masson, Institute of the History of Material Culture, Russian Academy of Sciences, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation
Summary:
Based on archaeological discoveries, this volume traces the
history of humanity in this vast region from the Palaeolithic
beginnings to circa 700 BC preceding the foundation of the
great Achaemenid Empire. The Stone Age with the beginning of
food production, the great civilizations of the Bronze Age with
the early process of urbanization from the Indus to the Oxus
and the Iron Age are thoroughly studied. No less important a
place is given to the history of nomadic pastoral tribes, such
as those of the Indo-Iranians.