Cover
Ancestral Images - The Iconography of Human Origins - Moser, Stephanie

Ancestral Images - The Iconography of Human Origins

Author
Moser, Stephanie
Price
NZ$45.00
Stock
1
Variations
Description

Pictorial reconstructions of ancient human ancestors have twin purposes: to make sense of shared ancestry and to bring prehistory to life. Stephanie Moser analyzes the close relationship between representations of the past and theories about human evolution, showing how this relationship existed even before a scientific understanding of human origins developed. How did mythological, religious and historically inspired visions of the past, in existence for centuries, shape this understanding? Moser treats images as primary documents, and her book is illustrated with more than 80 engravings, paintings, photographs and reconstructions. In surveying the iconography of prehistory, Moser explores visions of human creation that were produced during the Renaissance. She looks closely at the first scientific reconstructions of the 19th century, which dramatized and made comprehensible the Darwinian theory of human descent from apes. She considers, as well, the impact of reconstructions on popular literature in Europe and North America, showing that early visualizations of prehistory retained a firm hold on the imagination - a hold that archaeologists and anthropologists have found difficult to shake...

Format
Second hand Hardback
ISBN
9780750911788
Catalog
Category
SKU
137998

TO SUM IT UP...

  • Arty Bees Books is Wellington's largest independent seller of new and used books.
  • Shop online and pay by credit card or bank deposit.
  • Send us a book query if you can't find what you're looking for.