A wonderfully illustrated history of geology from ancient times to the present day

The geological processes that underlie all life on Earth can seem intimidatingly vast, ancient, and sometimes even alien. Our planet’s dynamics have fascinated humans for millennia, yet only recently have we developed a clear picture of how they work. This book presents the discoveries and critical scientific advances that inform our understanding of Earth’s origins and the forces driving geological change. Each chapter tells a key piece of the story, focusing on a major aspect of geology that shapes how we experience our world—time, energy, processes, use, and the interplay between geology and life. Geology: An Illustrated History takes readers from antiquity to the Anthropocene, providing an essential introduction to the subject.

• Discusses how the ancient Greeks, medieval Islamic thinkers, and figures of the Renaissance and Scientific Revolution conceptualized geological time
• Profiles leading figures such as Leonardo da Vinci, Nicolas Steno, James Hutton, Lord Kelvin, Charles Lyell, Charles Darwin, Louis Agassiz, and Inge Lehmann
• Covers topics ranging from the Santorini and Tambora eruptions to seismology, tectonics, erosion, mineralogy, and crystallography
• Looks at geology in art and its role in Chinese history, the Industrial Revolution, and the atomic age
• Explores how geology is guiding us to an understanding of life’s origins and whether there might be life elsewhere in the universe

"This is a fascinating and informative book, acting as both a geology primer and an historical record of the science. . . . Superbly readable."---David Gascoigne, Travels with Birds
"An attractive, thoughtful and visually engaging entry point into the history of geology."---Jon Trevelyan, Deposits Magazine

David Bainbridge is Professor of Comparative Anatomy in the Department of Physiology, Development, and Neuroscience at the University of Cambridge and a fellow of St Catharine’s College. His many books include Paleontology: An Illustrated History and Stripped Bare: The Art of Animal Anatomy (both Princeton).