Seven Skeletons, Lydia Pyne
Seven Skeletons, Lydia Pyne
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Seven Skeletons
The Evolution of the World's Most Famous Human Fossils

Author: Lydia Pyne

Narrator: Randye Kaye

Unabridged: 7 hr 49 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 08/16/2016


Synopsis

Over the last century, the search for human ancestors has spanned four continents and resulted in the discovery of hundreds of fossils. While most of these discoveries live quietly in museums, there are a few that have become world-renowned celebrity personas. In Seven Skeletons, historian of science Lydia Pyne explores how seven such famous fossils of our ancestors have the social cachet they enjoy today.

Drawing from archives, museums, and interviews, Pyne builds a cultural history for each celebrity fossil. These seven include the three-foot tall "hobbit" from Flores, the Neanderthal of La Chapelle, the Taung Child, the Piltdown Man hoax, Peking Man, Australopithecus sediba, and Lucy—all vivid examples of how discoveries of our ancestors have been received, remembered, and immortalized.

With wit and insight, Pyne brings to life each fossil: how it is described, put on display, and shared among scientific communities and the broader public. This fascinating, endlessly entertaining book puts the impact of paleoanthropology into new context, a reminder of how our past as a species continues to affect, in astounding ways, our present culture and imagination.

About Lydia Pyne

Lydia Pyne has degrees in history and anthropology and a PhD in history and philosophy of science from Arizona State University. Lydia has participated in field and archival work in South Africa, Ethiopia, Uzbekistan, Iran, and the American Southwest. She has published articles and essays in the Atlantic, Nautilus, and Public Domain Review, and she is a contributing editor for Appendix: A Journal of Experimental and Narrative History. She is a research fellow at the Institute for Historical Studies at the University of Texas at Austin. Lydia lives in Austin, Texas, where she is an avid rock climber and mountain biker.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Kevin on July 14, 2022

The Old Man, Piltdown, Taung Child, Peking Man, Lucy, Flo, and Sediba; Anthropological icons. Through textbooks and lectures, and the occasional article in National Geographic, I thought I had a grip on their scientific significance and place in human prehistory. 'Turns out, I had only an inkling of......more

Goodreads review by Jamie on January 20, 2020

Aside from its frequent sociological digressions, this book is worth reading for those with an interest in human evolution and the hominin ancestors that led to us. There is a chapter on each of seven major fossils, explaining how they were discovered, by whom, what scientific questions were answere......more

Goodreads review by Zivile on July 08, 2016

I received this book through "First to Read" program. I woke up this morning and learned about new Pokemon Go app game and rushed out of the bed, where I, usually, spend at least 30 mins trying to get up, in order to play that new exciting game. But as soon as I left my bed I dropped on my couch to f......more

Goodreads review by Anna on September 20, 2016

I won a copy of this book through the Goodreads Giveaways and was so looking forward to read it! Since I got it before the publication day, I made sure to clear enough days in reading "schedule" so I could post my review the day the book was officially out. Turned out I didn't set aside enough time,......more

Goodreads review by Nicky on October 10, 2016

Received to review via Netgalley Seven Skeletons is a very readable survey of some of the most famous hominid skeletons ever discovered. The choice of skeletons to discuss is interesting: it includes the known hoax, Piltdown Man, because like or not, that alleged find had a massive effect on the fiel......more