Anthropology is an exciting science that allows a person to look into his own past and present the stages of evolution, as well as learn about the history of the development of different peoples and ethnic groups. Therefore, leading experts can often not be very famous, but at the same time very worthy of attention. Let's get acquainted with some of them.
Carlos Castaneda
Perhaps this is the most famous American anthropologist. Carlos Castaneda is not just a scientist, but also a talented writer who chronicled the teachings of an Indian shaman. His work cannot be attributed to a particular genre - it is an original synthesis of literature, psychology, ethnography and mysticism. Some of Castaneda’s definitions are now used not only by anthropologists - for example, the concepts of “place of power” or “assembly point”. Carlos himself was inspired by the works of Aldous Huxley, as well as the images of local healers in Lima, where his family lived for some time. In addition, there was an active discussion in his circle of ideas that there was the possibility of programming dreams. In 1959, Castaneda graduated from college with a degree in psychology, and in 1960 he entered the university with a specialization in anthropology, where he went even deeper into the study of the peoples he was interested in. He traveled a lot to Mexico and Arizona. The main theme of Castaneda's scientific work was the use of hallucinogenic plants for shamanistic rituals of Indians.
Eugene Dubois
Anthropologists often turned out to be specialists in medicine. So, the Dutchman Eugene Dubois, who became the discoverer of the Pithecanthropus, was a military doctor. It was he who discovered the skulls, fragments of the facial skeleton and femurs of the species, which will subsequently be studied as one of the ancestors of man. Pithecanthropes were searched for on the island of Java and in Trinil; repeated excavations with similar results were also carried out in Leiden, where archaeologists also managed to find skeletons. Interestingly, Dubois's research was not accepted by the anthropologists surrounding him. It seemed too unusual and controversial decision. Paleoanthropology was only in its infancy, and the origin of man was not sufficiently studied. Another unusual fact - Dubois showed the skull to a French specialist, but after dinner he forgot his bag with finds in the restaurant. Fortunately, he was returned to him - otherwise the most important exhibit could be lost.
Rudolph Virchow
Anthropology is a science about the origin of man, based on the excavation and analysis of the found parts of skeletons and bones. Each opinion, in fact, is just a hunch, so the results can be unpredictable. So, Rudolf Virchow became famous for denying the possibility of the existence of Pithecanthropus and Neanderthals, discrediting the results obtained by other scientists. This markedly affected the development of science, albeit in a negative sense. Well-known anthropologists have always listened to the opinions of colleagues, and Virchow's statements could not go unnoticed. He suggested that the bones from Neanderthal are the remains of a rickety and mentally retarded person. Finds associated with pithecanthropus, he considered the skeleton of a gibbon. In general, he believed that fossil people are quite possible, but it is impossible to judge by the bones found due to age-related and pathological changes. Virchow also left his mark in archeology. He called the cave with paleolithic painting de Sautuola he called a deliberate fake, which slowed down the study of the oldest art monument in Spain for many years.
Gustav Koenigswald
It is amazing to learn about what little things can sometimes be enough for anthropologists to make a serious discovery with it. It can be a bone fragment or just teeth. It was the latter that became the basis of the scientific work of the German scientist Gustav Koenigswald. In the teeth of Chinese drugstore shops and archaeological finds in Java, he described Meganthropus and Pithecanthropus. His research, he deepened the studies of Eugene Dubois. By the teeth of Hong Kong's drugstores, he managed to establish the existence of a new species of Sinanthropus, unknown to scientists before. Among other things, he described hominids from Ngandong, conducted active work in Java and in southern China. In addition to people, he also studied the fossil orangutan.
Lika Family
Sometimes human anthropology carries away not one scientist, but a whole dynasty of specialists. The Lika brothers, as well as the spouse of one of them, children and grandchildren, are a family of anthropologists who have studied Kenyan fossils, the remains of monkeys and hominids of East Africa. Louis and Mary worked in the Olduvai Gorge, and Richard studied Lake Turkana. On the account of the Lika family is a description of many species of both human ancestors and fossil primates. The main discovery was the discovery of Australopithecus in East Africa, as well as the discovery of "skilled people." They became the link between the archanthropes and Paranthropus boisei, adding to the evolutionary chain.
Mikhail Gerasimov
An anthropologist, sculptor and archaeologist from Russia made a serious contribution to the development of science. His method of restoring a person’s appearance from his remains is widely used now. At the age of thirteen, Mikhail worked at the Anatomical Museum, and at 18 he wrote his scientific article on the Paleolithic excavations. Over the years of his work, Gerasimov created more than two hundred historical portraits-reconstructions. Of course, anthropology is a science about the origin of man as a whole, but specific individuals and their characteristics are included in its circle of interests. Therefore, the reconstruction of the appearance of Ivan the Terrible, Yaroslav the Wise or Friedrich Schiller is so valuable. In addition, the technique allows you to create images of ancient people - Australopithecus, Pithecanthropus, Neanderthal. The beginning of the work involved the collection of factual material. Gerasimov proved a direct connection between the bone structure and soft tissues, on the basis of which reconstructions were created. Interestingly, colleagues once decided to test Gerasimov and gave him a skull, without indicating to whom he belongs. He managed to accurately establish the appearance of the Papuan, which was almost identical to the photograph - the skull was brought during the Miklouho-Maclay expedition.
Sergey Gorbenko
As mentioned above, often anthropologists are doctors, and the named Russian specialist is no exception. Gorbenko trained in the laboratory of the Miklouho-Maclay Institute, where they teach the methodology of reconstruction of Gerasimov. He defended his thesis on the reconstruction of the appearance of Yaroslav Osmomysl. The main achievements were the performance of numerous portraits of French knights of the Middle Ages, King Louis the Eleventh and other famous heroes of the history of that period. Currently engaged in anthropological research of skulls from Cleary San Andre.