The title of the book is actually The World of the Past, edited by Jackquetta Hawkes. It is an anthology of historical writings on archaeology, ranging from Herodotus to Hawkes herself. If you are interested in the history of archaeology you will find this fascinating; if you have never heard of Qumran, Henry Layard, or Howard Carter I'd say give it a rest.
These are often personal accounts ("I saw it happen") of the earliest discoveries (Neanderthal, Cro-Magnon, Altamira and Lascaux caves, Ninevah, Babylon, and Egypt, including Tutankhamen's tomb. In fact, I will take this off my bookshelf if no one goes for it soon, just so I can read it again.
These are often personal accounts ("I saw it happen") of the earliest discoveries (Neanderthal, Cro-Magnon, Altamira and Lascaux caves, Ninevah, Babylon, and Egypt, including Tutankhamen's tomb. In fact, I will take this off my bookshelf if no one goes for it soon, just so I can read it again.