--- product_id: 7512248 title: "War Before Civilization: The Myth of the Peaceful Savage" brand: "lawrence h. keeley" price: "€ 39.65" currency: EUR in_stock: true reviews_count: 8 url: https://www.desertcart.hr/products/7512248-war-before-civilization-the-myth-of-the-peaceful-savage store_origin: HR region: Croatia --- # War Before Civilization: The Myth of the Peaceful Savage **Brand:** lawrence h. keeley **Price:** € 39.65 **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** War Before Civilization: The Myth of the Peaceful Savage by lawrence h. keeley - **How much does it cost?** € 39.65 with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.hr](https://www.desertcart.hr/products/7512248-war-before-civilization-the-myth-of-the-peaceful-savage) ## Best For - lawrence h. keeley enthusiasts ## Why This Product - Trusted lawrence h. keeley brand quality - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Description Full description not available ## Images ![War Before Civilization: The Myth of the Peaceful Savage - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71npkKb1DOL.jpg) ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5.0 out of 5 stars Everything you never imagined about war in human history, and why. *by O***E on Reviewed in the United States on November 25, 2015* This is one of the best books on the topic I have ever read. It is well written and accompanied by a profusion of charts and tables with lots of data that supports the thesis that the author proposes, i.e., that there was war before civilization, contrary to the opinion of many many researchers and scholars. The prevailing trend was based on a worldview that considered the emergence of war as a consequence (unintended, anyway) of the complexities that the new forms of organization (protostates and empires) brought with them. With the empires appeared the war and with the war the armies, in an infinite and unstable cycle of peace and war.Now, what professor Keeley did, or better, what he discovered at some moment during the exercise of his career as an archaeologist, was that he was wrong in following the prevalent opinion. In his words: "Like most archaeologists trained in the postwar period, I emerged from the first stage of my education so inculcated with the assumption that warfare and prehistory did not mix that I was willing to dismiss unambiguous 'physical' evidence to the contrary."After some findings in Stuttgart - Germany that revealed that several "men, women and children," have been "killed by blows to the head inflicted by characteristicly Early Neolithic axes," the prevalent opinion began to stagger. "The resistance," he adds, "that we archaeologists showed to the notion of prehistoric war, and the ease whit which it was overcome when the relevant evidence was recognized, impressed me and convinced me that a book on this subject would be worthwhile."Thus, after twelve chapters you got everything you need in order to decide what to think. Anyway, the problem with accepting that the epoch we live in right now has been the most pacific of all is really hard to assimilate. Just think about it for a moment and then you can say to yourself "this is impossible." But is it?Page after page, the author exposes you to the intricacies and multi layered aspects of the human behavior, so the book is more than counting corpses and bones with holes and injury marks in them. In fact, it is about the reason behind our tendency to fight before talking. The impulse that pushes us into fight everywhere and every time. That's why the narration covers a full spectrum that goes from evolution to biology to sociology to politics and the like.If you are interested in history, in warfare, in topics about violence, aggressiveness, "human condition in extremes," "political intrigues," and so on, this is your book. Also if you want to know about that idealized world that existed before the cities (and the wars between them) destroyed the pastoral landscapes, this is your book.If you teach or if you study about war or strategy, this is your book also.You won't forget it for a long time, I guess. In fact I finished the reading some months ago but the book is still with me.And a final advice: read it after or before "Sex and war" by Malcolm Potts and Thomas Hayden. Both of them are genuine contributions.Five stars. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5.0 out of 5 stars Civilization Vindicated *by R***Z on Reviewed in the United States on July 23, 2013* The default position of much social science has been that the societies existing prior to human history were largely peaceful and cooperative. When they did fight with one another the `fighting' was more a kind of ritual or rough play. Ultra-violence was something practiced by modern, `civilized' man. Hobbes's views were, in effect, trumped by Rousseau's.Lawrence H. Keeley's book was written to counter that view and it does so with hard facts and common sense. Not only was the warfare of prehistory often nearly constant; it was extremely violent and vast in its effects. The percentage of a population that could be obliterated was far greater than the percentages resulting from modern, `civilized' warfare.To tell his story, Keeley utilizes a worldwide canvas, studying warfare from New Guinea to the American northern plains. He discusses the anthropology of war, the prevalence of war and its importance, the tactics and weapons employed in war, the forms of combat, the differences between primitive and civilized war, casualty rates, profits and losses, the potential causes of war, the desirability and fragility of peace and the manner in which the ancient images and ethnographic evidence have been transmuted by contemporary (and earlier) social science. Subsidiary material such as cannibalism is also given due attention.The book is readable, the evidence compelling. This is a book that should be part of the repertoire of every practicing social scientist and every political commentator. I became aware of it when one of the latter recommended it on a news broadcast. This is not a screed or a half-baked bit of special pleading. This is an extensive, nearly exhaustive Oxford University Press monograph. Check it out. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4.0 out of 5 stars OK, well informed, but misnamed *by P***S on Reviewed in the United States on May 15, 2022* The Author consistently uses the words and idea of war "before civilization" - but I would certainly say this is actually documenting "war at the dawn of civilization" - which is to say, the beginning of "agricultural revolution" and the formation of towns and cities, as the evidence only goes back to about 10,000 years ago. The so-called "Cognitive Revolution" - when our species became different from other species of Homo - THAT was when Homo Sapiens were actually "savage" in the sense of possessing no civilization and being pure hunter-gatherers. So 60,000 years of evidence are missing from that - really this book is primarily investigating the "Dawn Of Civilization." A few examples of the last tribes are shown, but it's difficult to draw much from that about those missing 60,000 years. --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.hr/products/7512248-war-before-civilization-the-myth-of-the-peaceful-savage](https://www.desertcart.hr/products/7512248-war-before-civilization-the-myth-of-the-peaceful-savage) --- *Product available on Desertcart Croatia* *Store origin: HR* *Last updated: 2026-05-22*