Wow! eBook
Saharan Rock Art: Archaeology of Tassilian Pastoralist Iconography
Author(s): Augustin F.C. Holl (Author)
- Publisher: AltaMira Press
- Publication Date: 2 April 2004
- Language: English
- Print length: 176 pages
- ISBN-10: 0759106045
- ISBN-13: 9780759106048
Book Description
The Neolithic rock images of Iheren, Algeria are the starting point for Augustin Holl’s careful analysis of the iconography of Saharan rock art. Created in the third millennium B.C., the Iheren murals are over 3 meters wide and contain multiple compositions that present an allegorical depiction of the lifeways of Tassilian pastoralists in the Sahara. Holl approaches his task as an archaeologist, examining the various strands of evidence―icons, ideas, motifs, colors, and sizes-and weaving them together into a story that offers a window on the pastoralist worldview through the semiotics of their art. His deconstruction and synthesis of this corpus of material should be of interest to African archaeologists, rock art specialists, art historians, and cultural anthropologists alike.
Editorial Reviews
Review
Holl’s book opens up Saharan art to the Anglophone world, and we can anticipate much greater debate on its interpretation, and perhaps engagement with the ethnographic record. ― Journal Of African Archaeology
About the Author
Augustin Holl is Professor of Anthropology and Afro-Ameican and African Studies at the University of Michigan and a Curator at the University’s Museum of Anthropology. He is author of five books on African archaeology.
