Griffins, Cyclopes, Monsters, and Giants - these fabulous creatures of classical mythology continue to live in the modern imagination through the vivid accounts of the ancient Greeks and Romans. But what if these beings were more than fictions? This is the arresting and original idea that Adrienne Mayor explores in The First Fossil Hunters. Through careful research and documentation, she shows that many of the giants and monsters of myth did have a basis in fact - in ancient people's discoveries of the enormous bones of long-extinct dinosaurs, mastodons, and other animals that were once abundant in the lands of the Greeks and Romans.
Amazons--fierce warrior women dwelling on the fringes of the known world--were the mythic archenemies of the ancient Greeks. Heracles and Achilles displayed their valor in duels with Amazon queens, and the Athenians reveled in their victory over a powerful Amazon army. In historical times, Cyrus of Persia, Alexander the Great, and the Roman general
Traces the story of how ancient cultures envisioned artificial life, automata, self-moving devices and human enhancements, sharing insights into how the mythologies of the past related to and shaped ancient machine innovations.
Claiming Alexander the Great and Darius of Persia as ancestors, Mithradates,
the ruthless king and visionary rebel who challenged the power of Rome in the
first century BC, inherited a wealthy Black Sea kingdom at age fourteen after
his mother poisoned his father. This title tells the story of Mithradates.
Beginning in the East, with its Ice Age monsters, and ending in the West,
where dinosaurs lived and died, this richly illustrated and elegantly written
book examines the discoveries of enormous bones in North America and uses of
fossils for medicine, hunting magic, and spells.
With the news full of talk about bioterrorism and chemical weapons, Mayor's exploration of the origins of biological and unethical warfare is an attention-grabber that follows through with fascinating illustrative episodes.
Traces the story of how ancient cultures envisioned artificial life, automata, self-moving devices and human enhancements, sharing insights into how the mythologies of the past related to and shaped ancient machine innovations.
A treasury of astonishing mythic marvels--and the surprising truths behind themAdrienne Mayor is renowned for exploring the borders of history, science, archaeology, anthropology, and popular knowledge to find historical realities and scientific insights--glimmering, long-buried nuggets of truth--embedded in myth, legends, and folklore. Combing through ancient texts and obscure sources, she has spent decades prospecting for intriguing wonders and marvels, historical mysteries, diverting anecdotes, and hidden gems from ancient, medieval, and modern times. Flying Snakes and Griffin Claws is a treasury of fifty of her most amazing and amusing discoveries.The book explores such subjects as how mirages inspired legends of cities in the sky; the true identity of winged serpents in ancient Egypt; how ghost ships led to the discovery of the Gulf Stream; and the beauty secrets of ancient Amazons. Other pieces examine Arthur Conan Doyle's sea serpent and Geronimo's dragon; Flaubert's obsession with ancient Carthage; ancient tattooing practices; and the strange relationship between wine goblets and women's breasts since the times of Helen of Troy and Marie Antoinette. And there's much, much more.Showcasing Mayor's trademark passion not to demythologize myths, but to uncover the fascinating truths buried beneath them, Flying Snakes and Griffin Claws is a wonder cabinet of delightful curiosities.
Schon die alten Griechen haben den Traum vom künstlichen Leben geträumt. Jahrhunderte, bevor moderne Technologien die Erfindung von Maschinen ermöglichten, haben Menschen sich Roboter vorgestellt und sogar die ersten automatisierten Geräte erfunden. Adrienne Mayor wirft einen völlig ungewohnten Blick auf die scheinbar vertrauten Mythen der Antike.
Der Hannibal des Ostens Sulla, Lucullus und Pompejus, die drei größten Feldherren ihrer Zeit, ließen sich vom König eines gar nicht so großen Reichs vorführen: Mithridates von Pontos, ihrem gefährlichsten Feind. Ein Jahrhundert nach Hannibal stellte er das Römische Reich auf eine neue harte Probe. Auf diesen Coup war das krisengeschüttelte Rom nicht vorbereitet. Mithridates von Pontos überrannte in einem blitzartigen Angriff die römischen Truppen in Kleinasien und schwang sich zum Befreier der Griechen auf. In einer groß angelegten Verschwörung lies er 80 000 römische Siedler und Kaufleute in Kleinasien kaltblutig ermorden. Während die römische Republik unaufhaltsam ihrem Ende entgegenschlitterte, musste sie sich fast dreißig Jahre von einem besessenen Machtmenschen terrorisieren lassen, dem der Königsthron in seinem kleinen, aber wohlhabenden Land nicht reichte. Fundiert und mit aktuellen Bezügen schildert Adrienne Mayor eine der zwiespältigsten Persönlichkeiten der Antike: Als Vorfahren beanspruchte der orientalische Herrscher keine Geringeren als Alexander den Großen und den Perserkönig Dareios. Genüsslich inszenierte er die theatralischen Auftritte, die er seiner edlen Abstammung zu schulden glaubte. Ebenso grotesk war seine krankhafte Angst vor Feinden, die ihn dazu trieb, sich mit Giften in kleinen Dosen zu immunisieren – eine Methode, so kompromisslos wie sein ganzes Leben.
