Mysteries of Lost Civilisations; Mysteries of Prehistoric Life

Two in a series of six titles that explore mysteries through the use of modern science, myths, legends and recent discoveries. Lost Civilisations seeks to present a balanced view of the mysteries of ancient civilisations. Quoting Sir Leonard Wooley (1940), amongst others, we are told that 'Treasure hunting is as old as man; scientific archaeology is a modern development, but in its short life...it has done marvels.'

Children will learn that archaeologists can fit many jigsaw pieces together but missing pieces can still lead to a variety of theories being put forward to explain the past. The environmental point is also made that certain archaeological excavations have resulted in ancient evidence being inadvertently destroyed.

Prehistoric Life produced in the same format - predominantly white text on a black background with a sensible balance between text and colour illustration - highlights some new developments in palaeontology in the penultimate spread but, in the main, covers very familiar ground. Odd quotes that are barely related to the text accompany the main body of the text. Many of the smaller colour illustrations are appropriately framed in archaeological sample cases but the full page illustrations are disappointingly uninspired.