Nic Fields
Author of Troy C. 1700-1250 BC
About the Author
Dr Nic Fields a lecturer in Ancient History at the University of Edinburgh
Image credit: Babelio.com
Works by Nic Fields
Associated Works
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Common Knowledge
- Gender
- male
- Nationality
- UK
- Education
- University of Newcastle (BA|Ancient History)
University of Newcastle (PhD|Ancient History) - Occupations
- historian
university professor
academic administrator - Organizations
- Royal Marines
British School in Athens
Members
Reviews
Mycenaean Citadels c. 1350-1200 BC (Fortress) by Nic Fields
The real charm of this particular booklet in this series are the fascinating reconstructions of the citadels in question. Beyond that, this also works as an introduction to the Late Bronze Age collapse that ended the culture that created these fortresses.
½
I think the author here makes a game effort to try to bring order out of chaos, the chaos that was the aftermath of the murder of Julius Caesar. He partially succeeds, but it takes a great deal of effort to try to figure out what, exactly, is going on, a problem that is not entirely the author's fault. As is usual with this series, the illustrations are excellent. I think this is recommended for Roman history buffs, but if you aren't one, you may find the going rough.
A good little overview. It makes use of basic tables, maps and interesting illustration. If you knew nothing about the topic, it would be a good starter.
Sorry I have been remiss on book reporting duties, but I’ve been busy keeping my house from collapsing and haven’t had much time to spare. Today, however, I’m at a Starbucks® hiding out from rampaging Trick-or-Treaters, so I might as well catch up a little.
Bronze Age War Chariots is a typical Osprey/New Vanguard book; mostly intended for modelers or miniatures gamers, lots of pretty pictures, minimal but adequate text, not cheap. The black and white illustrations provide a useful reference for more scholarly books on chariot warfare; the color plates are highly detailed – perhaps overly so, with more things shown than the archaeological record actually justifies. There’s one egregious error; in a plate supposedly depicting action at the battle of Kadesh, Hittite charioteers overrun an Egyptian infantry unit. The Egyptians are all shown wearing the nmsh headdress; this is the cloth head covering with shoulder lappets that’s ubiquitous in cartoons and popular illustrations of ancient Egyptians. Unfortunately for the illustrator, the nmsh is restricted to Pharaoh; it’s essentially yet another Egyptian royal crown and no one else ever wears one. Actual Egyptian infantry head covering at this time would have been a heavy wig, thoroughly greased so weapon strikes had a better chance of glancing off. An Egyptian infantry platoon must have had an interesting odor after a day’s heavy fighting.
Possibly useful for a very quick background on chariot fighting, or if you want to model them.… (more)
Bronze Age War Chariots is a typical Osprey/New Vanguard book; mostly intended for modelers or miniatures gamers, lots of pretty pictures, minimal but adequate text, not cheap. The black and white illustrations provide a useful reference for more scholarly books on chariot warfare; the color plates are highly detailed – perhaps overly so, with more things shown than the archaeological record actually justifies. There’s one egregious error; in a plate supposedly depicting action at the battle of Kadesh, Hittite charioteers overrun an Egyptian infantry unit. The Egyptians are all shown wearing the nmsh headdress; this is the cloth head covering with shoulder lappets that’s ubiquitous in cartoons and popular illustrations of ancient Egyptians. Unfortunately for the illustrator, the nmsh is restricted to Pharaoh; it’s essentially yet another Egyptian royal crown and no one else ever wears one. Actual Egyptian infantry head covering at this time would have been a heavy wig, thoroughly greased so weapon strikes had a better chance of glancing off. An Egyptian infantry platoon must have had an interesting odor after a day’s heavy fighting.
Possibly useful for a very quick background on chariot fighting, or if you want to model them.… (more)
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- Works
- 52
- Also by
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- Rating
- 3.6
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- ISBNs
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