On Desert Shores: Archaeology and History of the Western Midriff Islands in the Gulf of California

Hot, arid, and uninhabited, the western Midriff Islands lie in the Gulf of California, surrounded by an often—treacherous sea. Given these conditions, why would ancient people go there, and why would anybody go there today? Thomas Bowen addresses these questions in the first comprehensive history of these islands.

Bowen draws on a wide range of sources, including the first archaeological field work ever conducted on the islands, written accounts dating back to the sixteenth century, oral hi...