BetweenSaharaandSea:AfricaintheRomanEmpirechallengesorthodoxviewsofthestoryofAfricaunderRomandomination.ItpresentsanewframeworkforunderstandingthisandotherterritoriesincorporatedintheRomanEmpire.BasedondecadesofresearchinNorthAfrica,DavidMattingly’sbookisacleverlyconstructedandinnovativeaccountofthehistoryandarchaeologyofancientNorthAfrica(roughlyequivalenttoMorocco,Algeria,Tunisia,andLibya)fromthefirstcenturyBCEtothethirdcenturyCE.Hechartsanewpathtowardabottom-upunderstandingofNorthAfricanarchaeology,exploringinturnthedifferingmaterialculturesandexperiencesoftheRomancommunitiesofthemilitaryandtheurbanandruralareas.RegionalandsocietaldifferencesemergeassignificantandoflongdurationinthefascinatingstoryofoneofthemostimportantsectorsoftheRomanEmpire.ThisimportantbookisthemostcomprehensiveinEnglishonRomanNorthAfrica.Itisremarkablyrich,withup-to-datereferencesandahostofnewideasandperspectives.Wellwrittenandillustrated,withaplethoraofmaps,itwillberequiredreadingforanyoneinterestedinthesubject.Ratherthanemphasizingtheroleofexternalactors,asstudiesof“RomanAfrica“havetraditionallydone,BetweenSaharaandSeafocusesonlocalcontributionstothemakingofAfricaintheRomanEmpire.TheauthordemonstratesthatthemultiplepopulationsencounteredbyRomewerenotanindistinctbloc,buthaddifferentidentitiesandcultures.
