Mayor

The First Fossil Hunters: Paleontology in Greek & Roman Times by Adrienne Mayor (2000)

When I think about paleontology, it is as a modern science – a specialized discipline with an interest in the prehistoric world digging up dinosaur bones. I imagine the remains of these great animals, long gone, reassembled in museums with signage describing them and how they lived. I never thought of them impacting ancient Greek and Roman culture. According to Mayor however, they did, profoundly. Just like today, past societies were fascinated by and tried to explain piles of bones discovered all over the Mediterranean region. And like modern humans who have encountered a new unknown, they tried to rationalize them within their limited understanding of the universe.

Mayor’s research covers about a thousand years of writings, beginning from before Homer through to the early Christian era, and involves such diverse writers as Apollodorus, St. Augustine, Cicero, Herodotus, Plato, Pliny the Elder, and Virgil. In some cases, only small fragments of the original sources remain or have survived through second-hand writings—someone quoting someone else. What I found interesting was how ancient scientists, philosophers, commoners, and politicians each reacted to these relics according to their specific worldview. Mayor supplements these writings with the thoughts and opinions of some of today’s leading paleontologists and scholars. Together, these thinkers from different eras help flesh out the relationship between myth and reality.

I enjoyed Chapter One the most — a fascinating examination of the origins of griffins. It seems to have a different tone than the rest. This part felt to me like a Masters or PhD thesis that was expanded into the present book, and sounded more like a quest, rather then academic research. Mayor’s search for this creature led her to wonder about the rest of ancient paleontology. How did ancient cultures deal with these giant bones within their territories? How did their worldviews and understanding of nature affect their interpretations of what they saw? This chapter set the tone for the rest of the book and made me interested in what she else had to say.

The First Fossil Hunters has no business being as good as it is. What I mean is that it is scholarly, well-researched, thought-provoking… and surprisingly interesting. It easily could have been a dry analysis of culture, myth, and paleontology, but it’s not thankfully. I liked reading it and think it can appeal to different people with varying interests. The writing style is enjoyable to read and easy to understand for the scholar and layman equally.

I’ve been noticing a trend in a lot of historical non-fiction lately. Many scholar-authors are developing the ability to make history accessible to the student and the casual reader. It seems these authors want to bring their ideas to the uninitiated and are writing like it. They aren’t trying to lecture or show off; they seem honestly trying to educate. I appreciate the effort and hope more authors continue this trend.