Goethe's Elephants

In the spring of 1784, Johann Wolfgang Goethe went looking for elephants. Despite being a layman in the field of anatomy, he had just shown that humans and animals were much more closely related than science and the church had previously taught. Still elated after proving the existence of the incisive bone in humans, Goethe now wanted to study the bone structure of elephants – something that had long puzzled experts. Goethe spared no effort in his research and even had an elephant skull sent to him from across the country. He conveyed his findings through elaborate illustrations and challenged the scholars of his time with his new perspective on the history of evolution.

Oliver Matuschek tracks down »Goethe’s elephants« in a number of natural history museums, offering readers a highly detailed and thoroughly entertaining recount of the great poet’s journey of discovery.