THE ANCIENT MOTHER
(Antica madre, a Series of Studies on Ancient Italy)

Italy, the cradle and centre of civic development, firstly in the Mediterranean, then in Europe. Ancient Italy’s cultural influence is still present today and Antica Madre acknowledges and examines this fact.
Antica Madre comes in 15 monographic volumes, each dedicated to the nations and peoples of the peninsula. In over 11,000 pages of text, it traces the colourful mosaic of the civilisations of Italy from pre-historic times to the late Middle Ages. Each volume examines all aspects of the life of a people: literature and art, religion and politics, philosophy and science, economy and daily activities.
Antica Madre is a unique work, both historically and archaeologically, which tells the story of alliances and rivalries, trade and raids, influences and conflicts. It represents an exciting history, embellished with 8,800 colour tables, which help to highlight both the continuity of the past in today’s world, and the original traits of our identity.
The monographs, essays and specialist contributions have been provided by 119 eminent authors (archaeologists, writers and university professors).
The work has been co-ordinated by Giovanni Pugliese Carratelli, Professor of Greek History and Historiography at the Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa.
The volumes are elegantly bound and of high publishing quality, satisfying the art lover’s aesthetic sense, the historian and archaeologist’s scientific interest, and the intellectual curiosity of the man of culture.