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Product Description The distinctive languages, art, and mythologies of the ancient Celts give archaeologists with an enduring quest in Northern Europe. The Celts rarely used their written language, passing along beliefs, knowledge, and wisdom through oral traditions. Artifact-rich burial grounds, like the megalithic tombs at Newgrange, Ireland, inscribed stones, and stone circles like Stonehenge, all yield clues to their mysterious ways.National Geographic supports K-12 educators with ELA Common Core Resources.Visit www.natgeoed.org/commoncore for more information. From School Library Journal Grade 3–7—With excellent-quality photographs and a well-written text, this is a thorough presentation of the most up-to-date knowledge about this ancient European culture, from its origins in 800 B.C. through A.D. 500, and cites the echoes of Celtic traditions that live on today. Aerial photos, time lines, informative sidebars, and National Geographic's famous maps augment text that asks and answers interesting questions ("Why did the Celts make human sacrifices?" "What happened when the Romans came?"). Rigorous in its distinction between theory, supposition, and proven fact, the book has photos of artifacts, sites, and physical remains—including close-ups of Celtic "bog people" showing details such as manicured fingernails and hairdos. Scale is scrupulously noted for all objects and structures in both English and metric units. Numerous explanations of techniques and processes—both of the Celts and those employed by archaeologists to study them—inject an element of how-to, a canny addition that will hook readers fascinated by how things work and how we figure things out. Previous books on the subject for this age group have concentrated on the British Isles, or have focused on Celtic myths or daily life. Ancient Celts is a balanced, scientific account that doesn't stint on the mummified remains. Sure to appeal to a broad range of learners.— Paula Willey, Baltimore County Public Library, Towson, MD Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. About the Author Jen Green received a doctorate from the University of Sussex in 1982. She worked in publishing for 15 years and is now a full-time author who has written more than 150 books for children on art, natural history, geography, the environment, history, and other subjects. Her titles include National Geographic Investigates: Ancient Celts and several books from the National Geographic Countries of the World series.