This brilliantly argued and elegantly written book examines the intricate web of belief, myth and society in the Neolithic period, continuing the story begun in the bestselling and critically acclaimed book The Mind in the Cave. Drawing on the latest research, the authors skilfully link material on human consciousness, imagery and religious concepts to propose provocative new theories about the causes of an ancient revolution in cosmology, the origins of social complexity and even the drive behind the domestication of plants and animals.

Author Biography

David Lewis-Williams is Professor Emeritus and Senior Mentor in the Rock Art Research Institute, University of the Witswatersrand, Johannesburg. Among his previous books are The Mind in the Cave, Believing and Seeing and, with Jean Clottes, The Shamans of Prehistory. David Pearce is a researcher in the Rock Art Research Institute, University of the Witswatersrand, Johannesburg.