Since their discovery 150 years ago, Neanderthals have gone from the losers of the human family tree to A-list hominins.
This book sheds new light on where they lived, what they ate, and the increasingly complex Neanderthal culture that researchers have discovered. In Kindred, Neanderthal expert Rebecca Wragg Sykes shoves aside the cliché of the shivering ragged figure in an icy wasteland, and reveals the Neanderthal you don't know, our ancestor who lived across vast and diverse tracts of Eurasia and survived through hundreds of thousands of years of massive climate change. " bold and magnificent attempt to resurrect our Neanderthal kin."- The Wall Street Journal Overall, it is a tantalising glimpse into a long-lost world."Kindred is important reading not just for anyone interested in these ancient cousins of ours, but also for anyone interested in humanity."- The New York Times Book Review Naturally, it tends to "this might demonstrate." and "which could be evidence of." but that's the nature of looking into the past.
The few images which are in the book are low-resolution and hard to make out. We get given the names of locations, but no geographic maps. Similarly, the discussion on dental wear, bone scrapings, and skeletal analysis would be greatly enhanced with even a couple of pictures. This mammoth engraved on mammoth ivory from La Madeleine proved beyond doubt that humans had lived alongside these extinct beasts #IceAgeArt /WAWTZATqTe
For example, we're told that a mammoth tusk was found into which a Neanderthal artist had carved the likeness of a mammoth. The book is full of interesting conjectures and conundrums.īut one thing is conspicuous by its absence - pictures! The book is begging for rich illustrations. The way we view the recent past has a powerful impact on the way we interpret the deep past. There's a surprising chapter on colonialism and racism. That helps to break up the sometimes repetitive lists of times and places. It is slyly and subtly funny - with little pop culture call outs. We get a full history of the science of Neanderthal studies, and an overview of the cutting edge laser-powered science that is happening today. It covers their habits, habitats, and human-like behaviour. This is an amazingly detailed look at the life of Neanderthals.
0 kommentar(er)
