The First Signs: Unlocking the Mysteries of the World's Oldest Symbols

"The First Signs - unlocking the mysteries of the world's oldest signs." With a cover artistically combining signs of some kind with Roman alphabet. Sounds, and looks, like it'd be a discussion of Paleolithic signs, right? Even has a graphic table of 32 signs immediately before the title page. HOW EVER, the book is really a long-winded discussion of Paleolithic cave art, not about signs. If you're interested in signs, check this out of a library if you can and read pages 163-172, because THAT'S the section in which SIGNS are discussed. The rest of the 320 pages is about ochre, and pictures of bisons / deer / horses, and related topics of cave art, but NOT SIGNS. The 32 signs in the table? Only 7 are mentioned in the text.

I thought the author might have something interesting to say. Instead, she classifies a couple of dozen squiggles, squares, dots and handprints, and then takes off on a totally unsupported, no-evidence speculation on how they were used for stone-age shamanism. That's my main gripe.My other, is that in the text, she refers to squiggles found at this or that site, but all photos are at the end, with no way to get to them on kindle without paging through manually. Most books adapted for kindle allow you to "jump" - this disappointing book does not. Oh, and the quality of the photos is terrible; most are too dark to see much.

The theory behind this publication is challenging: Are ancient geometric symbols found in caves meaningful or not ? Are they attempts at early writing or are they doodles or accidental human or animal scratches ? When the author suggests on p. 160 that it is possible on the basis of stacked rows of vertical and angled lines that "there's a connection between these two regions when almost 1,500 miles and at least 10,000 years separate them" one begins to wonder.In addition, her proof is often marred by the printing process. The illustrations in this book, which are critical to understanding her arguments, are very hard to read. The nature of the illustrations are obscured by the publishersdecision to print everything on uncoated paper, using very crude halftone screens. Had they at least printed the illustation section (between p. 148 and p. 149 )on coated paper the reader would be better informed.Having said this, I was intrigued, although not convinced, by her thesis that these scratches and symbols had meaning. I would liked to see her material presented in a more useful method with higher resolution photos.

While I enjoyed reading this book, I kept looking forward to her interpretation of the symbols. With her expertise, perhaps she had unlocked their language (?) secrets, as these same symbols kept repeating throughout Europe. No such luck. At the end I was QUITE disappointed to find out the author had no clue as to what they meant--She had unlocked NOTHING!

Not much to dislike if this is an area interest. I heard the author on a TedTalk, looked her up here on Amazon, and 2 minutes later had the book on the way. What I've enjoyed most is the non-specialist approach, the absence of technical jargon, and the obvious joy the author takes in the subject. If Ice Age life is of absolutely no interest to you, you may want to pass, although if any book is written in a way to inspire that interest, this could be the one!

This is a wonderful book that explores an understudied subject with breadth and depth. I have read a number of books about cave art and I loved the connections that she made, not isolating the "signs" from the art that has been studied, photographed, copied, and written about so extensively. Her scientific methods are reassuring and her careful, thoughtful hypotheses are fascinating. Chapter 13, The Lady of St.-Germain-la-Reviere and Her Mysterious Necklace, brought an amazed gasp of astonishment and appreciation.

Many sections of the book is an autobiographical story about her exploring the caves, and it's not something you can easily skip over if you don't feel like reading it. It is jarring to be reading nonfiction text and then have fiction text in the next paragraph, or even in the next sentence.

I'm a fiction writer and am always looking for inspiration. Ever since I saw Genevieve von Petzinger's TED talk, I knew I had to read this book. It did not disappoint. This bright young author expertly tackles the mysteries of the world's oldest symbols. The graphic communication signs painted on cave walls by our ancient ancestors beg us to ask, "What were they thinking?" and "What were they saying?" The author approaches the subject in a scientific manner, yet provides her personal thoughts into the mix. I've read several nonfiction books on paleoanthropology, but this is the first one I truly felt comfortable reading. I highly recommend this book.

It is agood book but at the same time a missed oportunity.Great introduction to much of what the latest theories say about art and culture of this distant times.BUT and it is a big but,the book is about the signs. Where are the pictures of those signs? There are some thirty of those in different places and times.More pictures please, lots more. An image is worth a thousand words.Sign by sign and its background and context, both per period and area.She continually boasts about the database in the book,well, a glimpse of it would have been a treat.I have noticed the signs in relation to cave paintings and alone for decades both in visits to caves and in the many books on the subject that I have collected.I know little more than I already did after reading it.Some interesting details, coments and trivia.Not much more.If this is your first book on the subject go for it. If you are a bit more familiar it may disappoint you a bit.

I was disappointed by this book on many levels. It is written in a simple, conversational style and is combination personal travelogue/cave art primer, so if you have no previous knowledge of cave art, this will likely whet your interest. For me, however, I was stunned when I reached the end of the book. 'That's all?' The author builds up her story layer by layer, using varied background information and research experiences, but the results of her own work, which have been touted as groundbreaking, are scarcely evident towards the end. Her research methods were, for me, not explained nor justified satisfactorily. She leads you to think that an interesting conclusion is in store, but - SPOILER ALERT! - sums it up by saying we will probably never know what the signs meant. There were also too few photographs for what is a very visual topic. I have read a great many archaeological books, both academic and popularised, such as this one. This book seemed a slapdash affair, but it would seem to be the only one out there that has taken on this fascinating subject so far. A wasted opportunity.

This hardback book arrived on time and packaged in Amazon's usual cardboard sleeve.The book was exactly as described and undamaged by its journey. The First Signs is a fascinating read and Genevieve writes in an engaging and lively manner. You almost feel that you are standing alongside her as she explores cave after cave all across Europe in her tireless quest to build her geometric signs database. She argues her case well and lays out the facts clearly and succinctly. Her reasoning is top notch and she gives us the reasons why she comes to the conclusions she puts forward. This is no dull as ditch water dry dissertation but a very accessible read for the interested layman such as myself. Ground breaking stuff! Well done

This would be SOOOOO much better if the pictures were in colour - but the story is highly readable and Genevieve is an accomplished storyteller

Excellent delivery and first class book