Written in Bones: How Human Remains Unlock the Secrets of the Dead

by Paul G. Bahn

Book Overview

Very comprehensive... an informative and fun read. -- Canadian Society of Forensic Science An excellent survey of the postmortem identification and interpretation of human remains. -- Science Books... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1552976599
• ISBN13: 9781552976593
• Release Date: March 2003
• Publisher: Firefly Books
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 0.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 7.1" x 10.0"
• Age Range: 12 years and up
• Grade Range: Grade 7 and higher

Customer Reviews

Interesting to the last page...

Although the writing tends towards the dry and academic, I find this one of the more interesting books on physical anthropology out there. It details dozens of the most well known and important anthropological finds in history, from who killed King Tut, to the legal battle of Kennewick Man, to the brutal murders of the "bog bodies" of Western Europe during the Bronze Age, and beyond. It's extremely facinating, but with each description totalling a few pages at most, I found it almost too brief. I would have loved to been able to read an entire book on just about all the burial finds offered up in "Written in Bones", as the short synopsis of each site feels more like a teaser than a complete story. Definitely a good way to get your feet wet if you're interested in physical anthropology and don't know where to start, or as a sort-of Cliff's Notes of some of the more recognizable finds in anthropology.

Great introductory book

As an introductory book to archeology and anthropology, this book is without peer. It's individual case studies are detailed enough to spark interest, but short enough not to bog down in details. There are lots of color photographs so the reader can see what the writer is trying to describe. The case studies cover many different parts of the world, including some that one doesn't readily connect with archeology, and many time periods, from 1.5 million years ago to a couple of hundred years ago.From these case studies one can begin to understand how ancient bodies are yielding their secrets to forensic science. Each case study produces more revelations. For me one of the most amazing was "The Wife of the Marquis of Dai" who died in China some 160 years before the birth of Christ. Her body is almost perfectly preserved and it has been discovered that she suffered from about 10 diseases, including tuberculosis, but that she died from a heart attack due to overeating.I found this book a delight. I've always been impressed by the way forensic anthropologists can sample, analyze and deduce human stories from these ancient bones. This book presents the results in a very readable fashion and should help to create wider interest and understanding of this fascinating topic.

Great addition to my science book collection!

Pictures. Pages and pages of nothing but glorious pictures, and maps, and photographs (along with the writing of course). For a deaf person who often has an opportunity to lend out science books to hearing and deaf kids, nothing is better than a science book chock full of illustrations and pictures to make sense of the words. This book is not really on forensic science, rather it is an anthropological book in which the history of human beings on this planet and in a variety of countries at different time periods lived. Does it shock people that even from the earliest beginnings of mankind, the prediliction for war and fighting existed? Some of the pictures are shocking in that our 'civilization' views the religious ceremonies of other ancient civilizations as cruel and obscene from our point of view. And of course, they are, because we would never do such a thing as put a child at risk...right? If anyone believes that no one puts children at risk in modern society has not had contact with the pharmaceutical companies who are pushing to test drugs on children with no benefit to the children. But I digress....Anthropology was not one of the sciences I got a lot of information in at college in biology and neuroscience. Yet it is interesting that some of the previously held views concerning brain capacity (size of the cranium) are being turned upside-down by findings in anthropology. I had no idea either that the Chinese also were as good at preserving bodies as the ancient Egyptians. I think the saddest parts of the whole book is the information on the 'bog bodies'. Life was cruel, and the inability of man to understand the cruelty of life often led to 'sacrifices' to appease the Gods of nature. I probably wouldn't recommend giving this book out to immature kids below 10th grade. Like the other reviewer commented...some of the pictures and the information is very dark, and very morbid. For those mature teenagers interested in going into science, and specifically anthropology and archaeology, this is a great and fascinating book.

Not for the squeamish!

A wide-ranging and comprehensive catalog of human burial sites and artefacts, this book explains much about past conditions. Bahn introduces us to many of the tools used in probing human remains. Evidence of the local environment, combined with physical and chemical analysis of the remains indicates the health, life style and sometimes the cause of death. His examinations are taken from a diversity of sites from nearly every continent [Australia is touched lightly through a site on an offshore island]. Along the way, many misconceptions are set aside and a few mysteries resolved. But many enigmatic situations emerge with pointers to work that remains to be done. Given the wealth of information available on many topics, Bahn is yet able to produce a solid, readable text. From the suspected "massacre" at Mohenjo Daro to real ones in Vilnius and Beacon Island, Bahn relates the finds and what they mean. The contorted skeletons of Mohenjo Daro appear to have met violent deaths during a conquest. The real cause was due to a combination of flooding, tainted water and successive waves of building. Other mysteries, such as whether Pharaoh Tutankhamen was murdered, remain unsolved. Mummies from the Western Hemisphere, have proven more expressive. Bahn evokes our sympathy for the Inca children found on Andean peaks. There's clearly more feeling aroused at the sight of a nearly perfectly preserved ancient child than occurs with anonymous skeletons. Even stronger feelings arise when you encounter the image of a young man wearing a helmet - and a rope around his throat. Why was he murdered? Even more poignant is the blindfolded girl with partially shaved head. She was purposely drowned.Even where the deaths were likely natural, Bahn gives us glimpses of inexplicable burial practices. Many cultures have cremated their dead, but to pack the remains in urns placed in straw models of the living is unique. For many centuries various societies disarticulated skeletons, choosing some bones for internment while discarding others. Leg, arm and other large bones may be found but toes, fingers and ribs were thrown away. The skull, of course, retained prominence, sometimes collected in large numbers. Respect doesn't necessarily mean stability - many skulls seem to have been transported from place to place. According to Bahn this suggests the living may have hoped to invoke the accumulated wisdom of the departed even if the external environment forced relocation.As indicated, much of this book is devoted to images. The photography is excellent, with images ranging from broad vistas to close-up analysis of disease-damaged bones. Some of the illustrations depict reconstructions of faces built up from skulls. Star Trek buffs will find the image on page 82 startling! There are also many good drawings that amplify the photographs. In fact, the only missing element in this book is maps. Another near-omission is Bahn's bibliography. There are referen