David Wengrow
David Wengrow is a British archaeologist and Professor of Comparative Archaeology at the Institute of Archaeology, University College London. He is known for his work on the origins of farming, cities, and states, and has co-authored the book 'The Dawn of Everything' with anthropologist David Graeber.
Books
This list of books are ONLY the books that have been ranked on the lists that are aggregated on this site. This is not a comprehensive list of all books by this author.
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1. The Dawn Of Everything
A New History of Humanity
The book challenges conventional narratives about human history, arguing that early societies were far more diverse and complex than traditionally portrayed. It explores how humans have experimented with various forms of social organization, governance, and economic systems throughout history. By examining archaeological and anthropological evidence, the authors propose that the roots of inequality and hierarchical structures are not as deeply entrenched in human nature as often believed. Instead, they suggest that humans have the capacity for a wide range of social arrangements, offering a more optimistic view of our potential for creating equitable societies.
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2. What Makes Civilization? The Ancient Near East And The Future Of The West
The Ancient Near East and the Future of the West
Drawing on archaeology, this study challenges myths of a self-contained Western origin by showing how Mesopotamia and Egypt forged urbanism, writing, luxury consumption, and state power through cross-cultural exchange and emulation. It reframes civilization as a product of interconnected networks shaped by desire and imitation, urging a reconsideration of modern Western identities and futures in light of deep entanglements with the ancient Near East.
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3. The Origins Of Monsters
Image and Cognition in the First Age of Mechanical Reproduction
A cross-cultural study of how composite creatures—griffins, sphinxes, and other hybrids—emerged and spread across ancient Eurasia through craft traditions, trade networks, and early technologies of image replication. Combining archaeology with cognitive science, it argues that such fearsome images exploited evolved human attention to predatory features, becoming powerful visual templates that elites circulated on seals, metalwork, and luxury goods from the Near East to the Mediterranean and beyond.
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