Myth and Geology [Out of print]
Product code: SP273
Print publication date: 14/02/2007
Geological Society of London, GSL Special Publications, Geophysics and Geophysical Applications, History of Geology
Type: Book (Hardback)
Binding: Hardback
ISBN: 9781862392168
Author/Edited by: Edited by L Piccardi and W B Masse
Weight: 1kg
Number of pages: 360
Lyell Collection URL: https://www.lyellcollection.org/toc/sp/273/1
Full Description
This title is no longer available in print format.
It is available electronically from the Lyell Collection. More information below.
This book is the first peer-reviewed collection of papers focusing on the potential of myth storylines to yield data and lessons that are of value to the geological sciences. Building on the nascent discipline of geomythology, scientists and scholars from a variety of disciplines have contributed to this volume. The geological hazards (such as earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions and cosmic impacts) that have given rise to myths are considered, as are the sacred and cultural values associated with rocks, fossils, geological formations and landscapes. There are also discussions about the historical and literary perspectives of geomythology. Regional coverage includes Europe and the Mediterranean, Afghanistan, Cameroon, India, Australia, Japan, Pacific islands, South America and North America. Myth and Geology challenges the widespread notion that myths are fictitious or otherwise lacking in value for the physical sciences.
Preface, L Piccardi
Geomythology: geological origins of myths and legends, D B Vitaliano
Exploring the nature of myth and its role in science, W B Masse, E Wayland Barber, L Piccardi and P T Barber
Geo-mythology of India, D Chandrasekharam
Genesis Chapter 1 and geological time from Hugo Grotius and Marin Mersenne to William Conybeare and Thomas Chalmers (1620-1825), M B Roberts
Environment and natural hazards in Roman and Medieval texts: presentation of the CLEMENS database project, E Vittori, S Fulloni and L Piccardi
From myth to Earth education and science communication, T Lanza and A Negrete
Folklore and earthquakes: Native American oral traditions from Cascadia compared with written traditions from Japan, R S Ludwin and G J Smits
The AD 60 Denizli Basin Earthquake and the apparition of Archangel Michael at Colossae (Aegean Turkey), L Piccardi
Writing on the walls: geological context and early American spiritual beliefs, S E Hough
The Fenris Wolf in the Nordic Asa creed in the light of palaeoseismics, N-A Mörner
Band-e-Amir lakes and Dragon valley (Bamiyan): myths and seismicity in Afghanistan, F G Bourrouilh-Le Jan, B Akram and M Schvoerer
The Bible and geology: destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, V G Trifonov
Geological histories and geohazard potential of Pacific Islands illuminated by myths, P D Nunn and R Pastorizo
Exploding lakes in myth and reality: an African case study, E Shanklin
Myth and catastrophic reality: using myth to identify cosmic impacts and massive Plinian eruptions in Holocene South America, W B Masse and M J Masse
Cosmogenic mega-tsunami in the Australia region: are they supported by Aboriginal and Maori legends? E Bryant, G Walsh and D Abbott
Meteorite records in the ancient Greek and Latin literature: between history and myth, M d'Orazio
Sooty sweat stains or tourmaline spots? The Argonauts on the Island of Elba (Tuscany) and the spread of Greek trading in the Mediterranean Sea, A Dini, A Corretti, F Innocenti, S Rocchi and D S Westerman
Place names describing fossils in oral traditions, A Mayor
Giants and elephants of Sicily, V Agnesi, C di Patti and B Truden
On the discovery of the ice age: science and myth, W H Berger
Shepherds' crowns, fairy loaves and thunderstones - the mythology of fossil echinoids in England, K J McNamara
Obsidian: sacred glass from the California sky, S Fox Hodgson
Erratic blocks: from protector beings to geosites to be protected, L Motta and M Motta
The contribution of the 'Sibilla Appenninica' legend to karst knowledge in the Sibillini Mountains (Central Apennines, Italy), D Aringoli, B Gentili, G Pambianchi and A M Piscitelli
Geological Society of London members: The online content of this title is included in the Book Archive.
Pay-per-view: The book or individual articles can be purchased on the Lyell Collection for short-term access (for personal use only). More information on pay-per-view.
This book opens a fascinating new window on the geological, but also on the mythological world. It forces everybody to reflect on hidden meanings of legendary folkloristic events and is wholeheartedly recommended to everybody.
Masse’s essay is just one of 25 contained within this fascinating collection, which describes the search for the underlying geological truths behind a global array of myths.
Apart from the intrinsic value of the individual contributions, the volume also serves as a useful introduction to the scope of the subject and its literature.
Myth and Geology will be a major reference in the field of geomythology for decades to come.
