Bone Rooms: From Scientific Racism to Human Prehistory in Museums
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.49 (672 Votes) |
| Asin | : | 0674660412 |
| Format Type | : | paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 408 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 2014-07-26 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
In the “bone rooms” of this museum and others like it, a scientific revolution was unfolding that would change our understanding of the human body, race, and prehistory.In Bone Rooms Samuel Redman unearths the story of how human remains became highly sought-after artifacts for both scientific research and public display. army doctor dug up the remains of a Dakota man who had been killed in Minnesota. When the San Diego Museum of Man opened in 1915, it mounted the largest exhibition of human skeletons ever presented to the public.The study of human remains yielded discoveries that increasingly discredited racial theory; as a consequence, interest in human origins and evolutionignited by ideas emerging in the budding field of anthropologydisplaced race as the main motive for building bone rooms. The Smithsonian Institution built the largest collection of human remains in the United States, edging out stiff competition from natural history and medical museums springing up in cities and on university campuses across America. Carefully recording his observations, he sent the skeleton to a museum in Washington, DC, that was colle
Redman is Assistant Professor of History at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. . Samuel J
Amazon Customer said Completely CAPTIVATING!. I am not a scientist – not a scholar of any kind; but, yet I found Dr. Redman’s book completely captivating. His writing style made his subject matter engaging and thought-provoking on a subject – bone rooms - I never thought I would have any interest. So, do I recommend this book for the everyday reader? Absolutely! You have to try it – I think you will be entertained albeit a non-fiction book.. Definitely recommend and look forward to any further publications from Redman Kyle N. A fascinating look at history! This book helps the reader understand why and how people became interested in the collection of human remains. Definitely recommend and look forward to any further publications from Redman!. "Well Done!" according to Amazon Customer. Interesting look into a not-so-distant past. This book illustrates how science and culture shape societies and how that prospective is every changing. Highly recommend for academics and general interest.
M. (Matthew Dennis, author of Seneca Possessed)How did our museums become great storehouses of human remains? What have we learned from the skulls and bones of unburied dead? By following the careers of such figures as enigmatic physical anthropologist Aleš Hrdlika, Samuel Redman’s Bone Rooms chases answers to these questions through shifting ideas about race, anatomy, anthropology, and archaeology and helps explain recent ethical standards for the collection and display of human dead. (Publishers Weekly (starred review) 2016-02-19)In exquisite detail, propelled by the captivating life stories of a diverse array of scientists and institutions, and backed by extensive archival research, Bone Rooms narrates the