Today is Book Review Day here at Cryptoworld. I’m not sure where the idea came from, but I thought it would be useful to point out a few weird and wonderful books on Adventure Travel, Cryptozoology, Myths, Lost Legends and the like…
From a Cryptozoology point of view, On the Trail of Ancient Man appears to contain the first account of the Allghoi Khorkhoi, the Mongolian Death Worm.
On the Trail of Ancient Man is primarily a narrative by Roy Chapman Andrews on his fieldwork as leader of the Central Asiatic Expedition of the American Museum of Natural History. In response to many requests for a collected account of his experiences during the expedition, Andrews recounts his adventures throughout Mongolia in the 1920s. He explores Asia, in search of the origins of Ancient Man, as well as the continent’s archaeological past. This is less an attempt at relaying the full scientific significance of their discoveries, and more an overview of the most important thoughts and ideas.
Andrews takes an anthropological perspective on analysing the Mongolian landscape and culture, as well as a palaeontologist’s point of view when discussing the fossils uncovered, from dinosaur eggs to a Protoceratop’s skull. Included is a chapter by the then president of the American Museum of Natural History, Henry Fairfield Osborn, on “Giant Beasts of Three Million Years Ago.†This is a fascinating scientific and cultural analysis on the expedition and ancient history of the Mongolian area, capturing every anecdote through photographs and charming words. This is a must for anyone interested in dinosaurs, Ancient Man, or the story of an early twentieth-century expedition in the name of archaeology.
