The World As It Once Was

All profits will be donated to save the very animals depicted, starting with assigning 24/7 armed guards to the last elephants with tusks-to-the-ground.

Have you ever seen a rhinoceros with horns so long they pierced the skies?

Have you ever seen an elephant with tusks so long they kissed the ground?

"This can't be true!", "Prehistoric!" these are some of the most frequent reactions we get from people looking for the very first time at the pictures of today's animals from this book.

Size marvels in itself.

The question the author asked himself when embarking on the journey of writing this book was: if a statue, a monument were to be raised to a species, what would that look like? What kind of animals and which postures would show the majesty of a species in all its glory?

Unfortunately, charismatic megafauna faces the fastest extinction speed. Amongst megafauna, one category in particular, the "trophy" individuals, is the first to vanish. Ironically, these animals are the most precious ones, as they possess the highest genetic quality as a result of natural selection.

More than five years in the making, bringing together pictures taken by about 100 highly talented photographers from around the world and benefitting from the scientific advice of 30 world class experts (some of which have worked with the BBC and David Attenborough or Nat Geo), all well-seasoned with powerful storytelling, this book is a cultural immersion like no other.