Explaining and exploring diversity in agricultural technology / edited by Annelou van Gijn, John Whittaker and Patricia C. Anderson.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Section 1. Introduction -- 1. The dimension of tools, skills and processes - Exploring Diversity / Patricia C. Anderson, Annelou van Gijn, John C. Whittaker and François Sigaut -- Section 2. The agricultural process : tools and techniques in cultural context -- 2. From Land Clearance and Preparation to Sowing / edited by Inja Smerdel and Grith Lerche -- 3. Tending the Crops / edited by José Luis Mingote Calderon -- 4. Diversity in Harvesting Techniques / edited by Patricia C. Anderson and Leonor Pena-Chocarro -- 5. Threshing Processes and Tools / edited by John C.Whittaker -- 6. Storage and Preservation / edited by Marie Russel, Pascal Verdin and François Sigaut -- 7. Cereal Processing and Cooking : Techniques, Tools, and Gestures / edited by Hara Procopiou -- Section 3. The social context of agricultural technology -- 8. Acquiring skills and the transmission of knowledge / edited by Inja Smerdel -- 9. Symbolic and legal aspects of agrarian life / edited by Annelou van Gijn and Jose Luis Mi,ngote Calderon -- 10. Agricultural practices : change and stability / edited by Thomas K. Schippers.

This volume is the outcome of collaborative European research among archaeologists, archaeobotanists, ethnographers, historians and agronomists, and frequently uses experiments in archaeology. It aims to establish new common ground for integrating different approaches and for viewing agriculture from the standpoint of the human actors involved. Each chapter provides an interdisciplinary overview of the skills used and the social context of the pursuit of agriculture, highlighting examples of tools, technologies and processes from land clearance to cereal processing and food preparation. This is the second of three volumes in the EARTH monograph series, The dynamics of non-industrial agriculture: 8,000 years of resilience and innovation , which shows the great variety of agricultural practices in human terms, in their social, political, cultural and legal contexts.