People have lived in Scotland for at least 10,000 years. Yet, for the first 9000 of these years, no recognisable concept of ‘Scotland’ even existed. Most books on Scottish history dispose of these nine millennia in a brief introduction, before moving on to the more familiar kings, queens, barons and battles of medieval Scotland. Ian Armit tells the story of Scotland’s earliest history by concentrating on 100 of the most exciting and accessible monuments, which he places firmly in their wider context.

Armed with full information on ‘How to get there’, the reader is encouraged to go out and discover the wealth of this archaeological evidence that can be seen all over Scotland - Neolithic chambered tombs and stone circles, Bronze Age rock carvings and hut circles, Iron Age hillforts and brochs, Roman forts, Pictish symbol stones , early Christian crosses and Viking graves. The book includes regional itineraries, a guide to museums and heritage attractions, and an archaeolgical glossary.