Ancient Africa: A Global History, to 300 CE

Thousands of years before the first centuries of the Common Era, communities across Africa were adapting to new climates, developing agriculture and exchanging goods and techniques across great distances. Christopher Ehret brings these histories into a connected account of the continent from the close of the last Ice Age to 300 CE.

Archaeological and linguistic evidence underpins his study of farming, ceramics, weaving, ironworking and trade. The story includes the development of ancient Egyptian institutions, the role of women in technological change and the movement of crops and ideas beyond Africa. Ehret places these developments within world history without treating African societies as a backdrop to events elsewhere.