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Greek Fire, Poison Arrows & Scorpion Bombs: Biological and Chemical Warfare in the Ancient World, by Adrienne Mayor
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Weapons of biological and chemical warfare have been in use for thousands of years, and Greek Fire, Poison Arrows & Scorpion Bombs, Adrienne Mayor's exploration of the origins of controversial weaponry, draws extraordinary connections between the mythical worlds of Hercules and the Trojan War, the accounts of Herodotus and Thucydides, and modern methods of war and terrorism.
Drawing on sources ancient and modern, Mayor describes ancient recipes for arrow poisons, booby traps rigged with plague, petroleum-based combustibles, choking gases, and the deployment of dangerous animals and venomous snakes and insects. She also explores the ambiguous moral implications inherent in this kind of warfare: Are these nefarious forms of weaponry ingenious or cowardly? Admirable or reprehensible?
- Sales Rank: #1082336 in Books
- Brand: Brand: Overlook Hardcover
- Published on: 2003-09-29
- Original language: English
- Number of items: 1
- Dimensions: 8.76" h x 1.14" w x 6.22" l, 1.39 pounds
- Binding: Hardcover
- 319 pages
Features
- Used Book in Good Condition
From Publishers Weekly
This dense but highly informative volume narrates the long pretechnological history of the use of poisons and fire in warfare. Mayor, who has published in Military History Quarterly, begins with the first legend of poisoned arrows: Hercules and his quiver of missiles tipped with the hydra's venom (probably snake venom). He and his wife also figure in an early use of an externally applied poison-the "poisoned" garments that killed them both with an inextinguishable flame may have been impregnated with saltpeter. Using their powers of observation and a sound if rule-of-thumb grasp of cause and effect, our not-so-primitive ancestors went on to set fires, throw fires and project fires (Greek fire reached its apex when flung from a ship-mounted flame thrower). They also put poison on arrowheads, in food and wine and in water supplies, tamed elephants to use as living tanks, bottled scorpions to throw over walls and knew about the problems of accidental casualties, enemy retaliation and lowering the ethical level of warfare. Mayor clearly describes how some of the poisons caused gruesome deaths, and Greek fire was essentially napalm. One antielephant weapon consisted of coating live pigs with pitch, setting them on fire and driving them at the elephants. The sheer mass of information will be daunting for the novice, particularly to one not familiar with classical mythology, but the book is otherwise absolutely absorbing, if macabre, and a formidable source on classical warfare, with bibliography, illustrations and annotations to serve further research.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
We recoil from biological and chemical weapons as uniquely nefarious creations of modern science, but Mayor, combing classical writings both mythical and historical, has found that they existed throughout antiquity. Far from merely reciting the armory of poisons and plagues she found, Mayor shows how the ancients' reactions to biological weapons prefigure contemporary attitudes about them. Between the poles of the ethical and the expedient, the concept of the honorable in warfare swung back and forth: a toe-to-toe Homeric swordfight, yes; a poisoned arrow from afar, no. Mayor integrates these oscillations into a narrative embracing the contents of Pandora's box and their adaptation into articles of war. Ancient commentators expressed both repugnance and admiration for ingenuity, attitudes Mayor detects in Hercules' slaying of the Hydra, in Odysseus' adventures, and in other myths. Expanding her ambit to Indian writings, and to the use of animals such as bees, scorpions, and elephants on the battlefield, Mayor spices her astute commentary with diverse opinions about biological weapons. Gilbert Taylor
Copyright � American Library Association. All rights reserved
Review
"'This ingenious, erudite, and sometimes sinister book conducts us into the heart of ancient darkness. It is a genuinely important, and timely, contribution to military history' - Robert Cowley, editor of editor of What If?[trademark]; 'An intriguing new book with often startling and unsettling results' Daily Telegraph; 'Fascinating...this book is really a collection of extraordinary anecdotes about a neglected aspect of ancient warfare' The Mail on Sunday; 'Mayor writes real English sometimes with whimsical wit' The Fortean Times; 'Although one might have doubts about the truth of many of these stories...they do have a cumulative impact on our impression of the ancient world' Times Literary Supplement"
Most helpful customer reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful.
A good book in discussing many aspects of warfare often glossed ...
By Gehrig J. Ornelas
A good book in discussing many aspects of warfare often glossed over or assumed with Hollywood hyperbole. At times I wish it was more specific and less philosophical, but that was enjoyable in its own way as well. If you seek a comprehensive understanding of historical warfare this book is a must.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful.
Five Stars
By Aaron W. Katz
This is a very interesting book about warfare in Ancient Times.The Title of this book is quite explanatory.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful.
What an amazing read! Who would have thought the Ancients we ...
By Malcolm G. Wright
What an amazing read! Who would have thought the Ancients we so skilled in chemical weapons and the use of nature in such a way. I re read sections of this from time to time as it is so fascinating.
See all 30 customer reviews...
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