Hamlet's Mill: An Essay Investigating the Origins of Human Knowledge And Its Transmission Through Myth

by Giorgio De Santillana
Hamlet's Mill: An Essay Investigating  the Origins of Human Knowledge And Its Transmission Through Myth
book data
36 ratings, 4.22 average rating, 11 reviews (more data...)
edit

published
August 1st 1992 by David R. Godine Publisher

binding
Paperback, 512 pages

isbn
0879232153   (isbn13: 9780879232153)

description
Ever since the Greeks coined the language we commonly use for scientific description, mythology and science have developed separately. But what came b...more






Sign in to Goodreads to see your friends' reviews of this book.







There are no discussion topics on this book yet. Be the first to start one »

friend reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

This book is currently not featured on any Listopia lists. Add this book to your favorite list »

other reviews (showing 1-20 of 63)



Phred
Phred rated it: 5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars
07/26/08

Read in September, 1970
recommended to Phred by: Many references to it in other works.
recommends it for: Patrick
This is my favorite book of all time. An essay on worldwide myth and legend. He is an MIT professor; 2/3 of the essay is his, the last 1/3 is the appendix by Hertha von Dechend, Hamburg U. I used two bookmarks and always read her remarks. Simply boggles the mind that ancient stories could be so similar while so geographically distant from one another. The "Mill" of the title represents the earth's wobble, which takes nearly 26,000 years to complete, and the ancients knew this. How coul...more
Like this review?   yes  
  add a comment

Jason
Jason rated it: 3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars
08/15/07

Read in April, 2002
Hmm... the subject of this book is truly profound. Hard to explain in a paragraph. Let's just say it takes bits and pieces of various world mythologies and puts them together in a way that suggests that the source of these myths are singular, and that the source may well have been as or more advanced technologically than we currently are. Sounds unbelievable until you consider how well researched the book is... so well researched infact, that it is an amazingly difficult read for the average per...more
Like this review?   yes  
  add a comment

Frank
Frank rated it: 3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars
05/29/08

Read in March, 2008
The subject matter was very dry reading until I started seeing the linkages,. The basic idea is that our pre-history is recorded in the myths and legends passed down to present day, and further that all cultures are passing down the same historical information.
It is fascinating book if you are interested in the material and an impossible read for those who are not.
Like this review?   yes  
  add a comment

John
John rated it: 5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars
10/08/08

Read in June, 2002
recommends it for: ANYONE
This book is essential for anyone wishing to learn about the links between mythology, zodiac, precessional cycles, and transmission and creation of knowlegde in pre-industrial and ancicent civilizations. An absolute classic and opus magnus of the archaeo-astrology and mythology genres.
Like this review?   yes  
  add a comment

Mary
Mary rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
06/10/08

An intense overview of the common origins of science and myth. One example being the European myth of Hamlets (Ahmlodhi's) Mill and the scientific concept of the precession of the equinoxes. A facinating read.
Like this review?   yes  
  add a comment

Peggy
Peggy rated it: 2 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars
08/13/07

difficult to rate this book.. The subject matter is well researched and fascinating, but all the references and footnotes made it difficult at best
Like this review?   yes  
  add a comment

Trevor
Trevor rated it: 3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars
07/21/08

A thesis that is ultimately dubious, but a fascinating read.
Like this review?   yes  
  add a comment

Sally
Sally rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
01/26/08

bookshelves: mythology, science
Fascinating account of the relation of mythology to astronomy.
Like this review?   yes  
  add a comment

Dave
Dave rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
09/21/08

bookshelves: history, language, smarty-pants-books
recommended to Dave by: Geary
Full of ideas I have not encountered anywhere else.
Like this review?   yes  
  add a comment

Arefin
Arefin added it
03/26/08

A study of human imagination beyond the science
Like this review?   yes  
  add a comment

Wm
Wm rated it: 5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars
03/20/08

bookshelves: history, mythology
Read in July, 2002
Great book, neat thesis.
Like this review?   yes  
  add a comment

marcali
marcali marked it as to-read
12/03/08

bookshelves: to-read

Sulivan
Sulivan rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
12/03/08


Marianne
Marianne marked it as to-read
11/29/08

bookshelves: to-read

Gary Sullivan
Gary rated it: 5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars
11/13/08


Alyssa
Alyssa marked it as to-read
10/22/08

bookshelves: to-read

Natalie
Natalie marked it as to-read
10/17/08

bookshelves: to-read

Lillian
Lillian marked it as to-read
10/12/08

bookshelves: to-read

Alicia
Alicia marked it as to-read
10/09/08

bookshelves: to-read

Steve
Steve rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
09/21/08

bookshelves: mythology


« previous 1 3 4