History and Animal Studies

Nonhuman animals other than human can hardly be characterized as novel historical subjects. Their remains have provided valuable evidence for historians of cultures that left little or no written trace. They traditionally have attracted the attention of economic historians, especially those who study times and places heavily dependent on agriculture. In more recent times, important animal-related institutions, from humane societies to zoos, have had their chroniclers. People distinguished in their association with animals, from breeders to hunters to scientists, have had their biographers as, indeed, have some animals distinguished in their own right, such as Jumbo, Greyfriars Bobby, or Seabiscuit. SpeciŽc animal-related issues or practices have received focused attention, and historians working in specialized areas continue to make use of such excellent studies as Richard D. French’s Antivivisection and medical science in Victorian society (1975). Even some much earlier work continues to be useful. Even some much earlier work continues to be useful. For example, E. P. Evans’ survey of The criminal prosecution and capital punishment of animals, which Žrst appeared in 1906, has been republished twice in the last twenty years; and Gustave