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The First Fossil Hunters: Paleontology in Greek and Roman Times
Griffins, Centaurs, Cyclopes, and Giants--these fabulous creatures of classical mythology continue to live in the modern imagination through the vivid accounts that have come down to us from the ancient Greeks and Romans. But what if these beings were more than merely fictions? What if monstrous creatures once roamed the earth in the very places where their legends first arose? This is the arresting and original thesis that Adrienne Mayor explores in The First Fossil Hunters. Through careful research and meticulous documentation, she convincingly shows that many of the giants and monsters of myth did have a basis in fact--in the enormous bones of long-extinct species that were once abundant in the lands of the Greeks and Romans.
As Mayor shows, the Greeks and Romans were well aware that a different breed of creatures once inhabited their lands. They frequently encountered the fossilized bones of these primeval beings, and they developed sophisticated concepts to explain the fossil evidence, concepts that were expressed in mythological stories. The legend of the gold-guarding griffin, for example, sprang from tales first told by Scythian gold-miners, who, passing through the Gobi Desert at the foot of the Altai Mountains, encountered the skeletons of Protoceratops and other dinosaurs that littered the ground.
Like their modern counterparts, the ancient fossil hunters collected and measured impressive petrified remains and displayed them in temples and museums; they attempted to reconstruct the appearance of these prehistoric creatures and to explain their extinction. Long thought to be fantasy, the remarkably detailed and perceptive Greek and Roman accounts of giant bone finds were actually based on solid paleontological facts. By reading these neglected narratives for the first time in the light of modern scientific discoveries, Adrienne Mayor illuminates a lost world of ancient paleontology. As Peter Dodson writes in his Foreword, "Paleontologists, classicists, and historians as well as natural history buffs will read this book with the greatest of delight--surprises abound."
As Mayor shows, the Greeks and Romans were well aware that a different breed of creatures once inhabited their lands. They frequently encountered the fossilized bones of these primeval beings, and they developed sophisticated concepts to explain the fossil evidence, concepts that were expressed in mythological stories. The legend of the gold-guarding griffin, for example, sprang from tales first told by Scythian gold-miners, who, passing through the Gobi Desert at the foot of the Altai Mountains, encountered the skeletons of Protoceratops and other dinosaurs that littered the ground.
Like their modern counterparts, the ancient fossil hunters collected and measured impressive petrified remains and displayed them in temples and museums; they attempted to reconstruct the appearance of these prehistoric creatures and to explain their extinction. Long thought to be fantasy, the remarkably detailed and perceptive Greek and Roman accounts of giant bone finds were actually based on solid paleontological facts. By reading these neglected narratives for the first time in the light of modern scientific discoveries, Adrienne Mayor illuminates a lost world of ancient paleontology. As Peter Dodson writes in his Foreword, "Paleontologists, classicists, and historians as well as natural history buffs will read this book with the greatest of delight--surprises abound."
361 pages, Hardcover
First published April 24, 2000
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 131 reviews
May 21, 2025
My god, the monster of Troy really does look like a skull.
October 3, 2023
In her introduction to the newer edition, Adrienne Mayor mentions that this book is now used as a text for post-grad and graduate studies. I can easily imagine The First Fossil Hunters as required reading for a university course on ancient Greek or Roman (or perhaps even Norse) theology. With an abundance of helpful illustrations, Mayor interweaves classical mythology with paleontology, speculating that writers and philosophers like Apollonius of Rhodes and Titus Lucretius and Empedocles were influenced by the found fossil remains of dinosaurs and extinct megafauna.
A GRAIN OF SALT
Because of the scarcity of documentation, much of ancient human history is necessarily speculative. What physical evidence there is for Mayor’s theory (e.g. the Hesione vase, circa 550 BCE) is open to interpretation. Still, Professor Mayor makes a compelling case. I invite you to read this for yourself and draw your own conclusions.
_____________________________
*I had a hard time engaging with this material, mostly because my base knowledge of archaic narratives is severely lacking. Apollonius and Lucretius and Empedocles are now well represented in my browser history as I (ashamedly) had no goddamn idea who they were.
A GRAIN OF SALT
Because of the scarcity of documentation, much of ancient human history is necessarily speculative. What physical evidence there is for Mayor’s theory (e.g. the Hesione vase, circa 550 BCE) is open to interpretation. Still, Professor Mayor makes a compelling case. I invite you to read this for yourself and draw your own conclusions.
_____________________________
*I had a hard time engaging with this material, mostly because my base knowledge of archaic narratives is severely lacking. Apollonius and Lucretius and Empedocles are now well represented in my browser history as I (ashamedly) had no goddamn idea who they were.
March 21, 2021
The ancient Greeks and Romans obviously found some dinosaur fossils and bones during their time but most of the time they where viewed as bones from mystical beings or hero's and this book examens that. A very interesting and well done audio book and would really want to read or listen to something else nonfiction based by her
April 16, 2015
In 2006, Chinese farmers digging in Chongquing province found a skeleton of a head and long spine. Since they couldn’t find any other bones, the locals made the completely rational conclusion that it must have been a dragon. Paleontologists came to the less satisfying conclusion that it was the neck of a dinosaur from 160 million years ago, a dinosaur known for its extremely long neck. If modern Chinese farmers could come upon dinosaur bones, it makes sense that ancient farmers must have made similar discoveries. And if they did, what conclusions would they draw?
While the above is not in The First Fossil Hunters, it is an example of the book’s premise: ancients were well aware of fossils and made interpretations of them. Most interpreted them as giants and monsters, but there were others who thought of them as part of natural history. This is an idea that seems perfectly reasonable to me and yet is something that I hadn’t imagined. But once the idea is presented, it allows for a new perspective of re-reading Pliny especially, and re-examining Greek myths. My only complaint is that after the initial idea is discussed, the book is a little repetitive.
While the above is not in The First Fossil Hunters, it is an example of the book’s premise: ancients were well aware of fossils and made interpretations of them. Most interpreted them as giants and monsters, but there were others who thought of them as part of natural history. This is an idea that seems perfectly reasonable to me and yet is something that I hadn’t imagined. But once the idea is presented, it allows for a new perspective of re-reading Pliny especially, and re-examining Greek myths. My only complaint is that after the initial idea is discussed, the book is a little repetitive.
February 5, 2025
The First Fossil Hunters presents a fascinating exploration of how ancient Greeks and Romans interpreted the fossil remains they discovered. The author hypothesizes that many mythological creatures, including griffins and giants, may have originated from attempts to make sense of prehistoric bones. Though Mayor is not a trained scientist, she has done extensive research combining archaeology, folklore, paleontology, and classical texts. She has discussed her findings with a number of scientists, who have assisted her in analyzing her theories. Mayor demonstrates how ancient peoples found, documented, and interpreted enormous bones of dinosaurs and other extinct animals.
I particularly enjoyed Mayor's discussion of the relationship between griffins and dinosaur fossils in Central Asia. She presents evidence that Scythian gold miners in the Gobi Desert regularly encountered the fossilized remains of Protoceratops and other dinosaurs, leading to tales of fierce creatures guarding gold deposits. I also enjoyed her analysis of the myths of giants and heroes, and how they might relate to discoveries of mammoth and other Pleistocene remains in the Mediterranean region. She cites passages from classic texts that reveal surprisingly accurate descriptions of fossil beds and prehistoric remains from well-known existing sites.
Mayor's interdisciplinary approach helps us understand how ancient civilizations made sense of their world. One of the book's greatest strengths lies in its demonstration that rational observation and mythological thinking were not mutually exclusive in antiquity but were complementary ways of explaining natural phenomena. I found it interesting to contemplate how scientific curiosity would have been expressed in ancient times. Recommended to those interested in mythology, archeology, and paleontology.
I particularly enjoyed Mayor's discussion of the relationship between griffins and dinosaur fossils in Central Asia. She presents evidence that Scythian gold miners in the Gobi Desert regularly encountered the fossilized remains of Protoceratops and other dinosaurs, leading to tales of fierce creatures guarding gold deposits. I also enjoyed her analysis of the myths of giants and heroes, and how they might relate to discoveries of mammoth and other Pleistocene remains in the Mediterranean region. She cites passages from classic texts that reveal surprisingly accurate descriptions of fossil beds and prehistoric remains from well-known existing sites.
Mayor's interdisciplinary approach helps us understand how ancient civilizations made sense of their world. One of the book's greatest strengths lies in its demonstration that rational observation and mythological thinking were not mutually exclusive in antiquity but were complementary ways of explaining natural phenomena. I found it interesting to contemplate how scientific curiosity would have been expressed in ancient times. Recommended to those interested in mythology, archeology, and paleontology.
May 12, 2014
Palaeontology seems like such a modern academic discipline, one that relies very much on advances in modern scientific knowledge. We know now how and why fossils are created, what they are and where they came from - but I suspect many people, like myself, have rarely stopped to think about how our ancestors may have viewed these massive bones and relics. In the modern era we go looking for such things, but hundreds and thousands of years ago people often just stumbled across them, via agriculture, erosion, climatic upheaval. What did they think they were?
Mayor argues that we can in fact determine how the ancient Greeks and Romans incorporated these fossils into their worldview, via their art, literature and mythology. The mythical griffin, for example, she argues, was based on the skeletal remains of protoceratops preserved in the sands of the Gobi Desert. Or the legend of the Cyclops was based on the discovery of prehistoric elephant and mammoth skulls, the large hole in the skull for the trunk mistaken for a single eye socket.
Greek literature and historical records are full of reports of the findings of giants' and heroes' remains, all given the stamp of authenticity through Greek mythology, and often given ceremonial burials. Ajax, Achilles, Theseus, the list goes on. Scholars have traditionally dismissed these reports as the credulity of simpler minds in ages past, but these ancient peoples really did find giant bones. There is ample testimony of fossils found in temples and in sacred sites through Greece, Italy, Persia, Egypt, North Africa. Not having the benefit of our knowledge, they simply developed elaborate myth systems to explain their existence.
If nothing else, this book is a warning against the increasing silo-ization of academic scholarship. How many palaeontologists would be familiar enough with Greek and Roman art and literature to make the connection between their fossils and the ancients' monsters of myth? How many Greek scholars would recognise the physical similarities between a stylised griffin on a bronze bowl and the skeleton of a protoceratops? It's a rare author that can successfully combine Greek and Roman literature, folklore, art and mythology with history, geology, archaeology and palaeontology - but Adrienne Mayor more than succeeds. What a fascinating book this is! I could hardly put it down.
Mayor argues that we can in fact determine how the ancient Greeks and Romans incorporated these fossils into their worldview, via their art, literature and mythology. The mythical griffin, for example, she argues, was based on the skeletal remains of protoceratops preserved in the sands of the Gobi Desert. Or the legend of the Cyclops was based on the discovery of prehistoric elephant and mammoth skulls, the large hole in the skull for the trunk mistaken for a single eye socket.
Greek literature and historical records are full of reports of the findings of giants' and heroes' remains, all given the stamp of authenticity through Greek mythology, and often given ceremonial burials. Ajax, Achilles, Theseus, the list goes on. Scholars have traditionally dismissed these reports as the credulity of simpler minds in ages past, but these ancient peoples really did find giant bones. There is ample testimony of fossils found in temples and in sacred sites through Greece, Italy, Persia, Egypt, North Africa. Not having the benefit of our knowledge, they simply developed elaborate myth systems to explain their existence.
If nothing else, this book is a warning against the increasing silo-ization of academic scholarship. How many palaeontologists would be familiar enough with Greek and Roman art and literature to make the connection between their fossils and the ancients' monsters of myth? How many Greek scholars would recognise the physical similarities between a stylised griffin on a bronze bowl and the skeleton of a protoceratops? It's a rare author that can successfully combine Greek and Roman literature, folklore, art and mythology with history, geology, archaeology and palaeontology - but Adrienne Mayor more than succeeds. What a fascinating book this is! I could hardly put it down.
August 10, 2020
A very interesting non-fiction treatment of what the Greeks and Romans knew about fossils (apparently they had a lot of them) and what they thought they were (the bones of mythological creatures and/or heroes, who were taller than ordinary people). Mayor is very scrupulously data-driven and I think my favorite part was the chart of how tall all the heroes were along with our source of evidence for each hero. There's also an appendix containing a fairly exhaustive selection of excerpts (in translation) from ancient authors who wrote about fossils. Definitely recommended for anyone who wants to know about the classical world and dinosaurs. However, I feel like this book is not as engaging as Mayor's later work; I thought The Poison King and Gods and Robots were much more well-written.
December 7, 2017
4.5 stars.
Mayor writes an incredibly easy to read, well-researched, and very convincing thesis in this book. I was already passively interested in this subject, but now that I've read this, I'm very much interested in learning about how other ancient and indigenous cultures interpreted the fossils and other prehistoric evidence.
Greeks and Romans were excavating fossil remains of prehistoric creatures long before archaeology and paleontology as sciences ever existed. However, modern archaeology has discarded or ignored many of these ancient findings because they were framed in an unscientific way--through myths and legends. The fossils of mega-fauna that these people were finding were interpreted as the bones of legendary heros and monsters from an age before the then-present day. And while this may seem like an absurd conclusion to scientists, the ancient's conclusion was actually quite accurate. At the core, the bones that were uncovered were understood to be those from various creatures that had existed much earlier in time, and had gone extinct before the current race of humans ever existed on Earth.
It can be easy to discard these observations as being shaped by beliefs. But even when that is the case, there must be substantial credit given, as these beliefs helped people to pay attention to the natural world around them and not simply ignore the giant fossils they came across. Rather, they dug them up and displayed them as relics in temples and museums, or gave them ceremonial reburials, treating them as ancient ancestors (or curiosities in the case of "monsters"). Regardless of the context they were displayed in, they were understood to have important significance in the history of human beings. Archaeologists have only recently started paying this much attention to bones and remains of non-humans in sites--for years they ignored these finds or simply wrote them off as waste, rather than recognizing them as important paleontological finds.
I was also excited to read this in hopes it would break down some of the preconceived views that some archaeologists sometimes have of cultures, and it did so perfectly, without bad mouthing the discipline altogether. Rather, Mayor encourages more cross-discipline workings, where archaeologists, paleontologists, and historians and mythographers work to analyze all aspects of a site being excavated or studied. Rather than archaeologists just discarding "useless" fossils and bones and discounting myths, legends, and cultural beliefs, a more varied team could provide more analysis of all aspects of site, and give a better understanding of the science, the history, AND the culture of the site in question, through multiple lenses of focus.
While I had been hoping this focused more on the griffin thesis (this is the first chapter, which is used more as a jumping off thesis for the rest of the book), it's still an excellent read for anyone interested in such a niche subject, and I'd very highly recommend it.
(Cross posted on my blog.)
Mayor writes an incredibly easy to read, well-researched, and very convincing thesis in this book. I was already passively interested in this subject, but now that I've read this, I'm very much interested in learning about how other ancient and indigenous cultures interpreted the fossils and other prehistoric evidence.
Greeks and Romans were excavating fossil remains of prehistoric creatures long before archaeology and paleontology as sciences ever existed. However, modern archaeology has discarded or ignored many of these ancient findings because they were framed in an unscientific way--through myths and legends. The fossils of mega-fauna that these people were finding were interpreted as the bones of legendary heros and monsters from an age before the then-present day. And while this may seem like an absurd conclusion to scientists, the ancient's conclusion was actually quite accurate. At the core, the bones that were uncovered were understood to be those from various creatures that had existed much earlier in time, and had gone extinct before the current race of humans ever existed on Earth.
It can be easy to discard these observations as being shaped by beliefs. But even when that is the case, there must be substantial credit given, as these beliefs helped people to pay attention to the natural world around them and not simply ignore the giant fossils they came across. Rather, they dug them up and displayed them as relics in temples and museums, or gave them ceremonial reburials, treating them as ancient ancestors (or curiosities in the case of "monsters"). Regardless of the context they were displayed in, they were understood to have important significance in the history of human beings. Archaeologists have only recently started paying this much attention to bones and remains of non-humans in sites--for years they ignored these finds or simply wrote them off as waste, rather than recognizing them as important paleontological finds.
I was also excited to read this in hopes it would break down some of the preconceived views that some archaeologists sometimes have of cultures, and it did so perfectly, without bad mouthing the discipline altogether. Rather, Mayor encourages more cross-discipline workings, where archaeologists, paleontologists, and historians and mythographers work to analyze all aspects of a site being excavated or studied. Rather than archaeologists just discarding "useless" fossils and bones and discounting myths, legends, and cultural beliefs, a more varied team could provide more analysis of all aspects of site, and give a better understanding of the science, the history, AND the culture of the site in question, through multiple lenses of focus.
While I had been hoping this focused more on the griffin thesis (this is the first chapter, which is used more as a jumping off thesis for the rest of the book), it's still an excellent read for anyone interested in such a niche subject, and I'd very highly recommend it.
(Cross posted on my blog.)
January 21, 2021
I cannot recommend this book, on the basis of the first chapter regarding griffins. I frankly think that Chapter 1 is intentionally deceptive, because of how much misleading information the author presented. The author:
- Omitted any mention of griffin iconography in Southwest Asia - i.e., the several THOUSAND years of griffins in Mesopotamia and the Iranian plateau.
- Failed to cite any Chinese or other East Asian sources regarding Protoceratops at gold mines (and I am pretty sure there are none).
- Failed to highlight the numerous anatomical discrepancies between ceratopsians and griffins (feet do not match, heads do not match, limbs do not match).
- Most egregiously, produced a misleading map on page 28. The author left off a scale and any specific sites, masking that the area is nearly 1 million square miles. Gold mines and Cretaceous dinosaur finds are nowhere near each other in Central Asia, but by making a bad map the author is able to mislead readers.
This is shoddy and misleading scholarship, and I cannot recommend it.
- Omitted any mention of griffin iconography in Southwest Asia - i.e., the several THOUSAND years of griffins in Mesopotamia and the Iranian plateau.
- Failed to cite any Chinese or other East Asian sources regarding Protoceratops at gold mines (and I am pretty sure there are none).
- Failed to highlight the numerous anatomical discrepancies between ceratopsians and griffins (feet do not match, heads do not match, limbs do not match).
- Most egregiously, produced a misleading map on page 28. The author left off a scale and any specific sites, masking that the area is nearly 1 million square miles. Gold mines and Cretaceous dinosaur finds are nowhere near each other in Central Asia, but by making a bad map the author is able to mislead readers.
This is shoddy and misleading scholarship, and I cannot recommend it.
March 15, 2012
I have finished the book itself and am working my way through the Appendices and footnotes. This book is very dense - it has only 5 chapters, and the rest of the book is taken up by appendices and footnotes - but it has been not only enjoyable but enlightening. I'm finding the footnotes almost as interesting as the text itself was.
I first read something about the linkage between fossils and folklore/mythology many years ago, and never saw anything further about it - but it always made sense to me as a hypothesis.
To find it now, more fully fleshed out, with classical references, historical images and descriptions, is an exciting find.
To also find that this book has helped create a new field of study that brings together the sciences of archaeology and paleontology and the studies of the Greek and Roman classics, and the mythology and folklore of many different peoples while still being readable and enjoyable is a wonderful find.
I first read something about the linkage between fossils and folklore/mythology many years ago, and never saw anything further about it - but it always made sense to me as a hypothesis.
To find it now, more fully fleshed out, with classical references, historical images and descriptions, is an exciting find.
To also find that this book has helped create a new field of study that brings together the sciences of archaeology and paleontology and the studies of the Greek and Roman classics, and the mythology and folklore of many different peoples while still being readable and enjoyable is a wonderful find.
November 13, 2024
This is a non-fiction about the proto-paleontologists from Ancient Greece and Rome. Yet another book that stresses that the people of old weren’t stupid, but their picture of the world determined what they saw. I read it as a part of the monthly reading for November-December 2024 at Non Fiction Book Club group.
The book consists of six chapters, each targeted at a specific set of problems. The first chapter tells the story of the author’s search for griffons. She isn’t a crazy crypto-zoologist, so she doesn’t believe that half-eagle half-lion creatures existed, but that the myth of them is based on something. Griffons aren’t a part of the original Greek mythology, they are ‘imported’ from Scythians. The creatures were assumedly protectors of gold and this precious metal in these lands was mostly collected from sands of Asian semi-deserts. In these deserts, complete skeletons of Protoceratops skeletons were found standing on their hind legs, in poses indicating that they died during sandstorms. And that common dinosaur had a beak-like (‘eagle’) head and a body (skeleton) similar to a lion or other large animal. Therefore it is likely that Scythians or tribes they were in contact with, found similar skeletons and attempted to add them to their world picture.
Chapter two is about modern finds in the Mediterranean lands. Dinosaur skeletons are rare, but there are a lot of bones of later giant mammals – like mammoths, mastodons, etc. Chapter three argues that when ancient found such bones, they interpreted them as bones of heroes and titans, and there are multiple sources that describe such finds, often after an earthquake, flood or other movement of sediment layers. Here is one of the examples of inquiry:
According to Pliny, this was “the worst earthquake in human memory, destroying twelve Asiatic cities in one night.” In cracks of the earth, vast skeletons appeared. Phlegon reports that the survivors “were hesitant to disturb the bones, but as a sample they sent a tooth from one of the skeletons to Tiberius.” Ambassadors from Pontus carried the tooth, which was just over a foot long, to Rome. They asked the emperor if he wished to see the rest of “the hero.” Eager to know the creature’s full size and form, but anxious to avoid desecrating a hero’s grave, Tiberius devised “a shrewd plan.” He hired a geometer named Pulcher to make a model of the giant based on the tooth. According to Phlegon, Pulcher sculpted a head proportionate to the size and weight of the tooth, and from that the mathematician estimated how large the entire body would have been. Pulcher’s replica, presumably a grotesque humanoid bust of clay or wax, pleased Tiberius, who sent the hero’s tooth back to its home soil for reburial.
The remaining chapters deal with further pieces of evidence of old bones and questions like why Aristotle and other natural philosophers (almost always) ignored such finds. Finally, she looks at hoaxes, old and new.
An interesting read, I ‘buy’ most of the author’s arguments.
The book consists of six chapters, each targeted at a specific set of problems. The first chapter tells the story of the author’s search for griffons. She isn’t a crazy crypto-zoologist, so she doesn’t believe that half-eagle half-lion creatures existed, but that the myth of them is based on something. Griffons aren’t a part of the original Greek mythology, they are ‘imported’ from Scythians. The creatures were assumedly protectors of gold and this precious metal in these lands was mostly collected from sands of Asian semi-deserts. In these deserts, complete skeletons of Protoceratops skeletons were found standing on their hind legs, in poses indicating that they died during sandstorms. And that common dinosaur had a beak-like (‘eagle’) head and a body (skeleton) similar to a lion or other large animal. Therefore it is likely that Scythians or tribes they were in contact with, found similar skeletons and attempted to add them to their world picture.
Chapter two is about modern finds in the Mediterranean lands. Dinosaur skeletons are rare, but there are a lot of bones of later giant mammals – like mammoths, mastodons, etc. Chapter three argues that when ancient found such bones, they interpreted them as bones of heroes and titans, and there are multiple sources that describe such finds, often after an earthquake, flood or other movement of sediment layers. Here is one of the examples of inquiry:
According to Pliny, this was “the worst earthquake in human memory, destroying twelve Asiatic cities in one night.” In cracks of the earth, vast skeletons appeared. Phlegon reports that the survivors “were hesitant to disturb the bones, but as a sample they sent a tooth from one of the skeletons to Tiberius.” Ambassadors from Pontus carried the tooth, which was just over a foot long, to Rome. They asked the emperor if he wished to see the rest of “the hero.” Eager to know the creature’s full size and form, but anxious to avoid desecrating a hero’s grave, Tiberius devised “a shrewd plan.” He hired a geometer named Pulcher to make a model of the giant based on the tooth. According to Phlegon, Pulcher sculpted a head proportionate to the size and weight of the tooth, and from that the mathematician estimated how large the entire body would have been. Pulcher’s replica, presumably a grotesque humanoid bust of clay or wax, pleased Tiberius, who sent the hero’s tooth back to its home soil for reburial.
The remaining chapters deal with further pieces of evidence of old bones and questions like why Aristotle and other natural philosophers (almost always) ignored such finds. Finally, she looks at hoaxes, old and new.
An interesting read, I ‘buy’ most of the author’s arguments.
September 27, 2020
Much more legitimate than the cover makes it look. Classicists tend to have a blind spot when it comes to the actual natural knowledge of the ancient Greeks and Romans; Mayor convincingly demonstrates that they were not only aware of animal fossils (mainly bones), but often sought them out.
None of her conclusions are as spectacular as the pretty convincing equation of the griffin (which, to the Greeks and their various neighbours, was just another animal that existed, not a supernatural beast) with Protoceratops fossils commonly found in Scythia—unsurprisingly, that's the one that made it to the cover—as for the most part the ancients tended to think of giant bones as remains of famous heroes (who were, of course, taller than people are today) or the beasts they slew in myths, which isn't nearly as interesting, but she provides a decent if pop-sci survey of the matter, shining a much-needed light onto a much-neglected field of study.
None of her conclusions are as spectacular as the pretty convincing equation of the griffin (which, to the Greeks and their various neighbours, was just another animal that existed, not a supernatural beast) with Protoceratops fossils commonly found in Scythia—unsurprisingly, that's the one that made it to the cover—as for the most part the ancients tended to think of giant bones as remains of famous heroes (who were, of course, taller than people are today) or the beasts they slew in myths, which isn't nearly as interesting, but she provides a decent if pop-sci survey of the matter, shining a much-needed light onto a much-neglected field of study.
November 12, 2022
I never would've connected paleontology with classical antiquity, which are both favorite topics of mine, but that's what made The First Fossil Hunter all the more intriguing when I started reading it. Adrienne Mayor's theory in this book is that we can trace certain aspects from mythology like griffins, cyclops and even the Greek heroes back to skeletal remains of prehistoric animals like dinosaurs and mammoths. It was a highly fascinating read!
Donna Postel was the narrator. She did a fantastic job and I would love to listen to more audiobooks narrated by her. I will definitely be on the search for more from Donna!
Donna Postel was the narrator. She did a fantastic job and I would love to listen to more audiobooks narrated by her. I will definitely be on the search for more from Donna!
January 9, 2025
I have enjoyed reading this book, learning about how science, imagination, understanding, myth and folktales merge and morph.
February 22, 2022
I'm a little disappointed. I was hoping that what this book would do was to draw direct lines between fossils and a bestiary of fantastic beasts (and where to find them). And it did, a bit, for griffins, and this gave me hope. And giants and cyclopes and dragons got some attention. But I'll admit it - I saw centaurs mentioned in the table of contents, and I was really hoping for the story of a discovery of the remains of some unfortunate rider who with his horse met a terrible fate, but with part of the horse missing ancients went "hey! Look at that" and came up with a new species... or something ... Yeah, that didn't happen. The closest is a hoax-slash-art installation at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. (Google “Centaur Excavations at Volos.”) Google Image that - it's pretty nifty.
And that brings me to a huge problem with this audiobook: if I hadn't had access through Scribd to a digital copy of the text, I would have been doing a lot of Google Image searching. There are references to photos and illustrations all through the book ... and I can't tell if a pdf is included with, say, the Audible release. So my rating would probably be higher if I had read rather than listened to this - which is absolutely no reflection on Donna Postel, who did a lovely job narrating. But, basically, this was not a good candidate to *be* narrated.
So my middling rating for this book is partly my feeling that the expectations set up by the book description were not met, and partly that my own personal expectations were not met. The explanation for centaurs - and satyrs and suchlike - is, to me, somewhat outside the stated scope of this book; it wanders rather far afield from what I at least expected it to be. I do want to explore some of the author's other books - her writing is engaging, and it is hard to make archaeology uninteresting. But I'll be avoiding the audiobooks.
And that brings me to a huge problem with this audiobook: if I hadn't had access through Scribd to a digital copy of the text, I would have been doing a lot of Google Image searching. There are references to photos and illustrations all through the book ... and I can't tell if a pdf is included with, say, the Audible release. So my rating would probably be higher if I had read rather than listened to this - which is absolutely no reflection on Donna Postel, who did a lovely job narrating. But, basically, this was not a good candidate to *be* narrated.
So my middling rating for this book is partly my feeling that the expectations set up by the book description were not met, and partly that my own personal expectations were not met. The explanation for centaurs - and satyrs and suchlike - is, to me, somewhat outside the stated scope of this book; it wanders rather far afield from what I at least expected it to be. I do want to explore some of the author's other books - her writing is engaging, and it is hard to make archaeology uninteresting. But I'll be avoiding the audiobooks.
June 17, 2024
This is a fascinating book about the connection between fossils and mythology. My sister recommended this book to me, explaining how elephant and mammoth skulls were often mistaken for one-eyed giants, because their trunk sockets were interpreted as central eye sockets. The book itself goes into more detail and discusses, among other things, how following ancient myths can lead modern paleontologists to fossil hotbeds.
My only complaint with this book is that audiobook listeners miss out on a lot of images. The narrator refers to the figures as they are referenced within the text, and it's possible to imagine what they look like from context clues. Still, I wish that my edition had a PDF supplement to browse online or that the narrator took time to provide image IDs within the audiobook itself. I might recommend the physical edition over the audiobook for that reason, although the narrator was wonderful, and I have no qualms with her performance besides accessibility concerns.
My only complaint with this book is that audiobook listeners miss out on a lot of images. The narrator refers to the figures as they are referenced within the text, and it's possible to imagine what they look like from context clues. Still, I wish that my edition had a PDF supplement to browse online or that the narrator took time to provide image IDs within the audiobook itself. I might recommend the physical edition over the audiobook for that reason, although the narrator was wonderful, and I have no qualms with her performance besides accessibility concerns.
May 25, 2020
Another great book from Adrienne Mayor with well-researched, convincing data from the classical world about the bones of heroes and giants who may actually have been mammoths, dinosaurs, or woolly rhinos. The correlation of ancient accounts of giant bones to fossil beds is convincing and some of the evidence, notable the vase painting of a man facing a fossil outcropping, is astonishing. Mayor's style is clear, mildly academic, and very entertaining. My favorite two chapters are the one on griffins and the final one, on ancient exhibitions of tritons and satyrs, the ancestors of the carnival gaffs of later days. There's a world of wonders here and I will never look at mythology quite the same way again.
May 16, 2021
Definitely an intriguing piece of work. I will eat up all day anyone discussing how in fact ancient people were not stupider than we are... There were bits in the middle where the organization broke down and it got confusing to listen to. In general she made a case that the sequence of events mattered (the early 1st millennium BC interest in fossils in the Greek world leaving a legacy that influenced the rest of antiquity) and then wrote things as a back-and-forth ramble anyway, which isn't really consistent. It is, however, a common and annoying habit of ancient historians... "oh, let me comment on agriculture in North Africa in the 5th century and follow it up with a comment about the 3rd century and then..."
March 20, 2021
One of the most unexpected nonfiction books I have ever read
December 15, 2017
Fascinated
May 15, 2019
I am a pure layman, I admit.
Still, this book was very layman-friendly, and it proposes fascinating conclusions.
To dumb it down:
I've often wondered at the compexities of ancient mythologies. How could human imagination come up with it all? And keep track of all those incestuous half-human brothers-twice-removed battling with horrendous multi-headed distant cousins?
Turns out it wasn't unaided.
Having read this book, I will from now on consider Greek mythology a case of an ancient CSI investigation, where the ancients tried to make sense of the mind-boggling, very present, very physical material evidence (heaps upon heaps of gigantic bones), while relying on their understanding of their own psyche and passions - in search of explanations.
Let me offer a not-completely-unlikely reconstruction of a not-completely-unlikely conversation:
"Dude... There's bones a-plenty up there."
"Yup. Sure is."
"You think we've come upon a graveyard of sorts?"
"Can't tell. But... They've sure been tossed around a lot, haven't they?"
"Whatcha sayin'?"
"Don't look like no graveyard to me. Reminds me of the Peloponnese that last war, ya know?"
"Ya mean, like a battleground?"
"Yup. ... All tossed around, by vultures and what-not."
"But, dude...! Look at the size of 'em! Who'd fight somen' like that? And win?!"
(*a significant glance skywards)
(*eyebrows arching)
"Ground's a-sparking..."
"?"
"Look." (*stomps the ground and the lignite deposits spark - because that's what lignite does in my layman's mind)
"Yer not sayin'...?"
"Don't mess with Zeus, 's all I'm sayin'. Them bones been here for a while, but the ground's still full of lightning..."
(not-completely-unlikely development of the Gigantomachy myth)
Also, I appreciate how the theory shortens the age-gap between ancient Greeks and modern people. The practices and the logic are pretty much the same - all-timely, dateless.
It is suggested that every half-decent old Greek temple had to boast with at least a "knee-cap" if not a "shoulder-blade" of some gigantic hero or another. Not unlike medieval European churches, which proudly showcased saints' preserved limbs.
I've also enjoyed the tidbit about ancient sightings of Nereids and centaurs - comparable to modern encounters with Bigfoot, Nessie and the lot.
A fascinating, accessible read.
Still, this book was very layman-friendly, and it proposes fascinating conclusions.
To dumb it down:
I've often wondered at the compexities of ancient mythologies. How could human imagination come up with it all? And keep track of all those incestuous half-human brothers-twice-removed battling with horrendous multi-headed distant cousins?
Turns out it wasn't unaided.
Having read this book, I will from now on consider Greek mythology a case of an ancient CSI investigation, where the ancients tried to make sense of the mind-boggling, very present, very physical material evidence (heaps upon heaps of gigantic bones), while relying on their understanding of their own psyche and passions - in search of explanations.
Let me offer a not-completely-unlikely reconstruction of a not-completely-unlikely conversation:
"Dude... There's bones a-plenty up there."
"Yup. Sure is."
"You think we've come upon a graveyard of sorts?"
"Can't tell. But... They've sure been tossed around a lot, haven't they?"
"Whatcha sayin'?"
"Don't look like no graveyard to me. Reminds me of the Peloponnese that last war, ya know?"
"Ya mean, like a battleground?"
"Yup. ... All tossed around, by vultures and what-not."
"But, dude...! Look at the size of 'em! Who'd fight somen' like that? And win?!"
(*a significant glance skywards)
(*eyebrows arching)
"Ground's a-sparking..."
"?"
"Look." (*stomps the ground and the lignite deposits spark - because that's what lignite does in my layman's mind)
"Yer not sayin'...?"
"Don't mess with Zeus, 's all I'm sayin'. Them bones been here for a while, but the ground's still full of lightning..."
(not-completely-unlikely development of the Gigantomachy myth)
Also, I appreciate how the theory shortens the age-gap between ancient Greeks and modern people. The practices and the logic are pretty much the same - all-timely, dateless.
It is suggested that every half-decent old Greek temple had to boast with at least a "knee-cap" if not a "shoulder-blade" of some gigantic hero or another. Not unlike medieval European churches, which proudly showcased saints' preserved limbs.
I've also enjoyed the tidbit about ancient sightings of Nereids and centaurs - comparable to modern encounters with Bigfoot, Nessie and the lot.
A fascinating, accessible read.
October 15, 2007
This book had a great premise: How ancient Greeks and Romans viewed the fossils they found. And there is some really fascinating stuff in the book. If the author could have stopped mentioning every page how she thought of all this, and everyone thought she was an idiot, but look she was actually right, nanner-nanner-nanner it would have been great. As it was, you had to stomach the authorial gloating to get to the good stuff, and sometimes that was asking too much.
August 24, 2008
I love this book. I do, absolutely.
She breaks down Greek myths into scientific explanations involved in paleontology (e.g. the griffin as Gobi desert fossils of the protoceratops). Very well researched and incredibly fascinating.
Also, she replied to my feedback email, granting me some further incite in her studies and her personality.
She breaks down Greek myths into scientific explanations involved in paleontology (e.g. the griffin as Gobi desert fossils of the protoceratops). Very well researched and incredibly fascinating.
Also, she replied to my feedback email, granting me some further incite in her studies and her personality.
July 7, 2008
Sometimes repetative, but fascinating and well-documented. A good merging of scientific and historical disciplines into a very interesting set of theories.
August 28, 2008
The basic premise of this book is fascinating.
August 5, 2015
a great read for anyone who is interested in science, history and mythology.
February 20, 2016
Interesting concept, not big on the writing style.
October 15, 2025
Super interesting - but seriously lacking a PDF accompaniment
My listening experience started out on a low, as the narrator announced that the audio will refer to illustrations in the print and ebook. I took a quick look for a PDF accompaniment, but no luck. If it wasn’t for my Audible Plus free access, I would be complaining that I paid just as much for the audiobook and deserved the same content.
I had a look at the sample of the Kindle version, and suggest you do the same. It contains a timeline, a long list of illustrations, several photographs and half a dozen maps (only two are visible, could only but they are worth looking at).
Before Chapter 1, the narrator read out the timeline, year by year. Yawn. No one could take this in without looking at a copy in print or on screen. Thank goodness the list of illustrations wasn’t similarly read out.
Ironically, this is a super interesting book - and once the first chapter got started, the mystery the author was tracking down immediately hooked me - and I couldn’t wait to hear more. Good thing I didn’t check out during the timeline reading.
Perhaps what I liked best about this book was how it transported me to ancient Greece, and how discoveries of dinosaur remains were interpreted, and what would happen to them. And I love how archaeologists had to figure out what a humongous bone found at the Acropolis were initially baffled, before they surmised that someone had taken it there, perhaps in worship. There are all sorts of stories like this in the book.
Also enjoyed the signs of the Griffin that are believed to have been found, and the modern day views on whether this creature existed or not.
Later in the book the narrator made reference to other materials (“Appendix 1 gives examples of the largest species…”), but as I could not see these, I’m not sure how good or extensive these were. I would have liked to look at them.
For the most part, the narration was good, though I wish the narrator learned how to pronounce provenance.
I am giving this book a rating of 4 for its careless approach to the audiobook listener’s experience, but it’s an awesome book that otherwise deserves a 5.
Below is a listener’s guide I created while listening to the audiobook, starting with a transcription of the chapter list. I hope you find it helpful:
CHAPTERS
Introduction (2 versions)
Historical Time Line
Chapter 1: The Gold-Guarding Griffin: A Paleontological Legend
Chapter 2: Earthquakes and Elephants: Prehistoric Remains in Mediterranean Lands
Chapter 3: Ancient Discoveries of Giant Bones
Chapter 4: Artistic and Archaeological Evidence for Fossil Discoveries
Chapter 5: Mythology, Natural Philosophy, and Fossils
Chapter 6: Centaur Bones: Paleontological Fictions
TIME FRAMES
To refresh your memory of geological time frames, or for a first-time look, here is the full list (I’ve marked the period from which the fossils discussed in the book came from):
Precambrian (4.5 billion–541 million years ago): earliest known life forms
Paleozoic (541–250 million years ago): early fish, amphibians, and reptiles appear
Mesozoic (250–65 million years ago): the age of dinosaurs; this is the period from which the fossils that inspired ancient legends were formed
Cenozoic (65 million years ago–present): mammals dominate; Ice Age megafauna like mammoths emerge
Holocene (10,000 years ago–present): modern humans and recorded history begin
Edition details below refer to the Audible audiobook I listened to:
The First Fossil Hunters: Dinosaurs, Mammoths, and Myth in Greek and Roman Times
Written by: Adrienne Mayor
Narrated by: Donna Postel
RELEASE DATE 2021-02-23
FORMAT Unabridged Audiobook
LENGTH 8 hrs and 59 mins
PUBLISHER Tantor Audio
©2000 Princeton University Press (P)2021 Tantor
My listening experience started out on a low, as the narrator announced that the audio will refer to illustrations in the print and ebook. I took a quick look for a PDF accompaniment, but no luck. If it wasn’t for my Audible Plus free access, I would be complaining that I paid just as much for the audiobook and deserved the same content.
I had a look at the sample of the Kindle version, and suggest you do the same. It contains a timeline, a long list of illustrations, several photographs and half a dozen maps (only two are visible, could only but they are worth looking at).
Before Chapter 1, the narrator read out the timeline, year by year. Yawn. No one could take this in without looking at a copy in print or on screen. Thank goodness the list of illustrations wasn’t similarly read out.
Ironically, this is a super interesting book - and once the first chapter got started, the mystery the author was tracking down immediately hooked me - and I couldn’t wait to hear more. Good thing I didn’t check out during the timeline reading.
Perhaps what I liked best about this book was how it transported me to ancient Greece, and how discoveries of dinosaur remains were interpreted, and what would happen to them. And I love how archaeologists had to figure out what a humongous bone found at the Acropolis were initially baffled, before they surmised that someone had taken it there, perhaps in worship. There are all sorts of stories like this in the book.
Also enjoyed the signs of the Griffin that are believed to have been found, and the modern day views on whether this creature existed or not.
Later in the book the narrator made reference to other materials (“Appendix 1 gives examples of the largest species…”), but as I could not see these, I’m not sure how good or extensive these were. I would have liked to look at them.
For the most part, the narration was good, though I wish the narrator learned how to pronounce provenance.
I am giving this book a rating of 4 for its careless approach to the audiobook listener’s experience, but it’s an awesome book that otherwise deserves a 5.
Below is a listener’s guide I created while listening to the audiobook, starting with a transcription of the chapter list. I hope you find it helpful:
CHAPTERS
Introduction (2 versions)
Historical Time Line
Chapter 1: The Gold-Guarding Griffin: A Paleontological Legend
Chapter 2: Earthquakes and Elephants: Prehistoric Remains in Mediterranean Lands
Chapter 3: Ancient Discoveries of Giant Bones
Chapter 4: Artistic and Archaeological Evidence for Fossil Discoveries
Chapter 5: Mythology, Natural Philosophy, and Fossils
Chapter 6: Centaur Bones: Paleontological Fictions
TIME FRAMES
To refresh your memory of geological time frames, or for a first-time look, here is the full list (I’ve marked the period from which the fossils discussed in the book came from):
Precambrian (4.5 billion–541 million years ago): earliest known life forms
Paleozoic (541–250 million years ago): early fish, amphibians, and reptiles appear
Mesozoic (250–65 million years ago): the age of dinosaurs; this is the period from which the fossils that inspired ancient legends were formed
Cenozoic (65 million years ago–present): mammals dominate; Ice Age megafauna like mammoths emerge
Holocene (10,000 years ago–present): modern humans and recorded history begin
Edition details below refer to the Audible audiobook I listened to:
The First Fossil Hunters: Dinosaurs, Mammoths, and Myth in Greek and Roman Times
Written by: Adrienne Mayor
Narrated by: Donna Postel
RELEASE DATE 2021-02-23
FORMAT Unabridged Audiobook
LENGTH 8 hrs and 59 mins
PUBLISHER Tantor Audio
©2000 Princeton University Press (P)2021 Tantor
October 24, 2025
I read Adrienne Mayor's The First Fossil Hunters: Dinosaurs, Mammoths, and Myth in Greek and Roman Times after reading Edward Dolnick's Dinosaurs at the Dinner Party. Dolnick referenced Mayor's book and it sounded interesting. Several years ago, I watched a show on Discovery or the History Channel that was inspired by Mayor's work. First published in 2000, The First Fossil Hunters inspired new academic research, museum exhibits, TV shows, and novels.
Mayor's project is "to recover the long-neglected evidence of human encounters with fossils from the time of Homer to the late Roman empire (ca. 750 B.C. to A.D. 500)." (3) One of her overall goals is to encourage greater interdisciplinary work between classicists, paleontologists, art historians, and others. She looks at various ancient Greek and Roman myths, art, and stories about giant and strange bones and links them to the paleontological record of the region. She shows which fossils have been found in the Mediterranean region (ex: mastodons, rhinoceroses, elephants, mammoths, cave bears, etc.) and how they match the areas of known giant bones from antiquity. Her first chapter looks at griffins and how their history can be traced back to fossil deposits in Asia. She also attempts to explain why the major philosophers of antiquity did not discuss the fossils found in the region (ex: academic vs. popular divide, only certain texts have survived, didn't know how to explain, etc.). Finally, she ends her book looking at paleontological fictions in the Roman era and today.
I think The First Fossil Hunters is an interesting book. I think it is cool to think about how ancient Greeks and Romans interpreted the fossils they discovered. It makes sense that they would interpret the fossils as evidence of their mythology. For example, the large femur bones from extinct creatures look similar to human femur bones. According to Greek mythology, older ages of men were significantly larger. Another example includes the Monster of Troy art on a vase. The monster's depiction looks very much like a fossil. It was also interesting to see people of antiquity recognize the fossils as evidence of older creatures and attempt to identify them. They too collected the fossils and displayed them.
Mayor's work raises the question, however, of a chicken vs egg with mythological stories and fossils. Which came first? Is that something we can ever really know? Does it matter? Flaws of the book include poor maps and pictures. Mayor also examines a very broad period of time and a diverse group of peoples. On the other hand, Mayor was an independent researcher when writing this book in the 1990s. From what I can gather, First Fossils was largely received positively by academics. More research, especially interdisciplinary research, has been done since First Fossils was first published. Mayor, herself, earned a job at Stanford University. While this book is a 3.5 read for me, I don't mind rounding up due to the greater academic attention to the topic that resulted.
When writing and researching The First Fossil Hunters, Adrienne Mayor was an independent scholar. Since 2006, she has been a research scholar at Stanford University in the Classics Department and the History and Philosophy of Science Program.
Mayor utilized multiple ancient Greek and Latin sources for her work. Appendix 2: Ancient Testimonia lists all her Greek and Latin sources. Appendix 1: Large Vertebrate Fossil Species in the Ancient World lists pre-historic species that have been found in areas the ancient Greeks and Romans found giant remains. Mayor also used and relied upon a large selection of secondary sources for her work. She provides chapter endnotes, a Works Cited section, and an index at the end of the book.
I would recommend The First Fossil Hunters to anyone interested in paleontology and Greek and Roman mythology.
Mayor's project is "to recover the long-neglected evidence of human encounters with fossils from the time of Homer to the late Roman empire (ca. 750 B.C. to A.D. 500)." (3) One of her overall goals is to encourage greater interdisciplinary work between classicists, paleontologists, art historians, and others. She looks at various ancient Greek and Roman myths, art, and stories about giant and strange bones and links them to the paleontological record of the region. She shows which fossils have been found in the Mediterranean region (ex: mastodons, rhinoceroses, elephants, mammoths, cave bears, etc.) and how they match the areas of known giant bones from antiquity. Her first chapter looks at griffins and how their history can be traced back to fossil deposits in Asia. She also attempts to explain why the major philosophers of antiquity did not discuss the fossils found in the region (ex: academic vs. popular divide, only certain texts have survived, didn't know how to explain, etc.). Finally, she ends her book looking at paleontological fictions in the Roman era and today.
I think The First Fossil Hunters is an interesting book. I think it is cool to think about how ancient Greeks and Romans interpreted the fossils they discovered. It makes sense that they would interpret the fossils as evidence of their mythology. For example, the large femur bones from extinct creatures look similar to human femur bones. According to Greek mythology, older ages of men were significantly larger. Another example includes the Monster of Troy art on a vase. The monster's depiction looks very much like a fossil. It was also interesting to see people of antiquity recognize the fossils as evidence of older creatures and attempt to identify them. They too collected the fossils and displayed them.
Mayor's work raises the question, however, of a chicken vs egg with mythological stories and fossils. Which came first? Is that something we can ever really know? Does it matter? Flaws of the book include poor maps and pictures. Mayor also examines a very broad period of time and a diverse group of peoples. On the other hand, Mayor was an independent researcher when writing this book in the 1990s. From what I can gather, First Fossils was largely received positively by academics. More research, especially interdisciplinary research, has been done since First Fossils was first published. Mayor, herself, earned a job at Stanford University. While this book is a 3.5 read for me, I don't mind rounding up due to the greater academic attention to the topic that resulted.
When writing and researching The First Fossil Hunters, Adrienne Mayor was an independent scholar. Since 2006, she has been a research scholar at Stanford University in the Classics Department and the History and Philosophy of Science Program.
Mayor utilized multiple ancient Greek and Latin sources for her work. Appendix 2: Ancient Testimonia lists all her Greek and Latin sources. Appendix 1: Large Vertebrate Fossil Species in the Ancient World lists pre-historic species that have been found in areas the ancient Greeks and Romans found giant remains. Mayor also used and relied upon a large selection of secondary sources for her work. She provides chapter endnotes, a Works Cited section, and an index at the end of the book.
I would recommend The First Fossil Hunters to anyone interested in paleontology and Greek and Roman mythology.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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