The Shamans of Prehistory - Hardcover

Clottes, Jean; Lewis-Williams, David

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0810941821 ISBN 13: 9780810941823

Publisher: Harry N. Abrams Publishers, 1998

Synopsis

Book by Clottes, Jean, Lewis-Williams, David

About this title

Language Notes:

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: French

From Library Journal:

Since the first report of cave art (at Altamira in 1879), attempts have been made to explain the purpose of the mysterious drawings. Art for art's sake; totemism; hunting, destructive, or fertility magic; and modern structuralist theories have all been proposed. Clottes (The Cave Beneath the Sea: Paleolithic Images at Cosquer, LJ 4/1/96) and Lewis-Williams (cognitive archaeology, Univ. of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg) propose a new theory emphasizing the shamanic aspects of Paleolithic cave paintings. After an unavoidably technical chapter providing the basics of shamanism, the authors examine Paleolithic paintings from across France and Spain, noting the use of animal figures, composite figures combining both human and animal characteristics, and geometric designs that are all common elements of shamanism. The bulk of the book is both fascinating and thought-provoking, and while it is not likely to be the last word on the subject, it is an important contribution to the field. Recommended for academic and large public libraries.?Mary Morgan Smith, Northland P.L., Pittsburgh
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Harry N. Abrams Publishers
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 0810941821
• ISBN 13: 9780810941823
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 120