Welsh Journals

There are, however, some unfortunate aspects to the work, some of which are editorial in nature. Inconsistency is evident in the Introduction, where certain Latin phrases are translated and others are not. The narrative is also annoyingly disrupted by a series of tables which would have been better placed in a separate appendix at the end of the book. The appendix which is included, 'Neath Castle-An Archaeological Note', gives the impression of having been inserted as an afterthought or as a concession to make the book, essentially an academic work, more palatable to a wider local readership. Therein, perhaps, lies the major shortcoming of this little book: its failure to indicate clearly which audience it is written for, despite an obvious attempt to attract widespread interest with a glossy production. Although the Introduction contains a good decription of how the accounts are reckoned, it could have been expanded to help the layman more fully to appreciate the wealth of information contained in the documents and, more especially, to help put them into a clearer historical perspective. Despite these shortcomings, the author has succeeded in producing a worthy book which will be greatly valued by those who have an interest in local history. He has demonstrated not only considerable skill in transcribing and translating medieval documents, but also an ability to edit these sources and select a coherent and cohesive body of information for publication. K. W. B. LIGHTFOOT Borough Museum, Neath THE MEDIEVAL EXPANSION OF EUROPE. By J. R. S. Phillips. Oxford University Press, 1988. Pp. 303. Hardback £ 27.50, paperback £ 8.95. Although the subject has attracted many specialist studies, there is relatively little accessible, general literature on medieval Europe's knowledge of the wider world. What there is-and the approaching Columbian celebrations will probably increase its influence-tends to represent medieval geographical knowledge as quaint, ill- informed and blinkered, and to treat such figures as Marco Polo as colourful exceptions, rather than as representatives of a period of intense geographical speculation and active exploration of the world beyond Christendom. Dr. Phillips sets out to correct this misconception, arguing that conventional hindsight can exaggerate the achievements in navigation, exploration and settlement of the more familiar 'Age of Discovery'. For example, he emphasises how the Portuguese pioneers of the fifteenth century were driven and inspired by traditional motives and ideas. Crusading and commerce had brought medieval Europe into increasing contact with other peoples since the eleventh century. Geographical ideas inherited from the classical past had been added to by Arab explorers, as well as by European travellers. The legends of Prester John and the belief that the