1493
How Europe's Discovery of the Americas Revolutionized Trade, Ecology and Life on Earth
Published on 6. September 2012
Book
Paperback/Softback
720 pages
978-1-84708-245-9 (ISBN)
Description
Two hundred million years ago the earth consisted of a single vast continent, Pangea, surrounded by a great planetary sea. Continental drift tore apart Pangaea, and for millennia the hemispheres were separate, evolving almost entirely different suites of plants and animals. Columbus's arrival in the Americas brought together these long-separate worlds. Many historians believe that this collision of ecosystems and cultures - the Columbian Exchange - was the most consequential event in human history since the Neolithic Revolution. And it was the most consequential event in biological history since the extinction of the dinosaurs.
Beginning with the world of microbes and moving up the species ladder to mankind, Mann rivetingly describes the profound effect this exchanging of species had on the culture of both continents.
Beginning with the world of microbes and moving up the species ladder to mankind, Mann rivetingly describes the profound effect this exchanging of species had on the culture of both continents.
Reviews / Votes
Almost mind-boggling in its scope, enthusiasm and erudition [it] is a history of globalisation before the term had been invented ... Ranging freely across time and space, Mann's book is full of compelling stories ... A tremendously provocative, learned and surprising read -- Dominic Sandbrook * Sunday Times * Journalist Charles Mann chronicles how Christopher Columbus' second New World expedition in 1493 triggered a global upheaval ... Drawing on new research, Mann reframes the past 500 years to riveting effect * Nature * Erudite and eye-opening history reveals how Europe's discovery of the Americas revolutionised life on earth * Sunday Times * 1493 soars with majestic ambition * Guardian * 1492 was the Year Zero of globalisation, and 1493 was Year One ... It has been a thrilling and frequently catastrophic ride for humankind ever since, and science writer Charles C Mann's excitement never flags as he tells his breathtaking story * Financial Times * Charles Mann gives us the version of the Columbian outcome that our era calls for -- Timothy Brook * Literary Review * Cheerfully eclectic rather than doctrinaire... The value of 1493 stems from its lively and diligent accounts of the course of history -- Robin Blackburn * Guardian * Mann's study is almost global in its sweep and size * Sunday Herald *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Dimensions
Height: 203 mm
Width: 131 mm
Thickness: 46 mm
Weight
487 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-84708-245-9 (9781847082459)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Charles C. Mann
1493
How Europe's Discovery of the Americas Revolutionized Trade, Ecology and Life on Earth
E-Book
09/2011
1st Edition
GRANTA BOOKS
€15.99
Available for download
Previous edition
Charles C. Mann
1493
How the Ecological Collision of Europe and the Americas Gave Rise to the Modern World
Book
09/2011
Granta Books
€51.00
Article exhausted; check for reprint
Person
Charles Mann is the co-author of four books, including The Second Creation: Makers of the Revolution in 20th Century Physics and the bestselling 1491 (2005/6). He is the correspondent for The Atlantic Monthly and Science magazines, and editorial co-ordinator for the internationally best-selling Material World books. He lives in Massachusetts.