Human Sacrifice: In History And Today
Condition: SECONDHAND
This is a secondhand book. The jacket image is a photograph of the exact copy we have in stock. This image shows the condition of this book. Further condition remarks are below.
Condition remarks:
Book: Good
Jacket: Worn/faded, no tears
Pages: Good
Markings: Previous owner
A rigorous work of anthropological and historical scholarship, Human Sacrifice: In History and Today chronicles the practice of ritual human sacrifice across a sweeping range of cultures and civilizations, from ancient Mesopotamia and pre-Columbian Mesoamerica to the religious traditions of Africa and Asia. Nigel Davies presents a comparative and unflinching examination of the social, religious, and political forces that drove societies to offer human life as the ultimate sacred tribute. Written with academic authority yet accessible to a general readership, the work argues that human sacrifice was rarely an act of mere barbarism but rather a deeply embedded ritual response to humanity's most profound anxieties about death, fertility, and divine power. Davies also uncovers disturbing evidence suggesting that such practices have not entirely vanished from the modern world, lending the narrative an unsettling contemporary relevance. The result is a thought-provoking and meticulously researched study that challenges readers to confront the darkest intersections of religion, power, and human nature.
Author: Nigel Davies
Format: Hardback
Genre: Anthropology
Condition remarks:
Book: Good
Jacket: Worn/faded, no tears
Pages: Good
Markings: Previous owner
A rigorous work of anthropological and historical scholarship, Human Sacrifice: In History and Today chronicles the practice of ritual human sacrifice across a sweeping range of cultures and civilizations, from ancient Mesopotamia and pre-Columbian Mesoamerica to the religious traditions of Africa and Asia. Nigel Davies presents a comparative and unflinching examination of the social, religious, and political forces that drove societies to offer human life as the ultimate sacred tribute. Written with academic authority yet accessible to a general readership, the work argues that human sacrifice was rarely an act of mere barbarism but rather a deeply embedded ritual response to humanity's most profound anxieties about death, fertility, and divine power. Davies also uncovers disturbing evidence suggesting that such practices have not entirely vanished from the modern world, lending the narrative an unsettling contemporary relevance. The result is a thought-provoking and meticulously researched study that challenges readers to confront the darkest intersections of religion, power, and human nature.