Footmarks : A Journey into Our Restless Past

Lucid, poetic and fascinating' Alice Roberts

'Engaging, authoritative and full of fascinating stories of the past' Ray Mears

'A gentle, personal and very readable book' Julia Blackburn, author of "Time Song"

'A triumph' James Canton, author of "The Oak Papers"

'I loved this book' Francis Pryor

On paths, roads, seas, in the air, and in space – there has never been so much human movement. In contrast, we think of the past as static, 'frozen in time'. But archaeologists have in fact always found evidence for humanity's irrepressible restlessness. Now, the latest developments in science and archaeology are transforming this evidence and overturning how we understand the past movement of humankind.

In this book, archaeologist Jim Leary traces the past 3.5 million years to reveal how people have always been moving, how travel has historically been enforced (or prohibited) by people with power, and how our forebears showed incredible bravery and ingenuity to journey across continents and oceans.

With Leary to show the way, you'll follow the footsteps of early hunter-gatherers preserved in mud, and tread ancient trackways hollowed by feet over time. Passing drovers, wayfarers and pilgrims, you'll see who got to move, and how people moved. And you'll go on long-distance journeys and migrations to see how movement has shaped our world.