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Review
'It is a work of profound and accurate scholarship, the product, over long years, of patient and careful research. Side by side with the history of the potato, its adoption by man and its spread throughout the world, is a study of the influence which it has exerted on the social structure of those people who accepted it as a staple article of diet.' Nature
'It is a great work, in many respects a noble work, that will excite attention and arouse interest in many quarters.' The Spectator
'His profound learning and the felicity of phrase with which he is able to express it from a combination which carries the reader avidly from page to page … Dr Salaman has written a truly monumental work.' Horticultural Abstracts
'This book stands as the high achievement of an erudite and humane person of wide knowledge and even wider understanding.' Heredity
'It is a great work, in many respects a noble work, that will excite attention and arouse interest in many quarters.' The Spectator
'His profound learning and the felicity of phrase with which he is able to express it from a combination which carries the reader avidly from page to page … Dr Salaman has written a truly monumental work.' Horticultural Abstracts
'This book stands as the high achievement of an erudite and humane person of wide knowledge and even wider understanding.' Heredity
Product Description
First published in 1949, this remarkable book is the culmination of a life-long study of every aspect of the potato. Dr Salaman is concerned first with the history of the potato as a member of the botanical genus Solanum, its adaptation by man as a cultivated plant, and the record of its spread throughout the world; secondly he considers the influence the potato has exerted upon the social structure and economy of different peoples at different times. The archaeological and anthropological evidence for the early significance of the potato among the peoples of Latin America is discussed in detail with numerous illustrations, but the central portion of the book is concerned with the European, and particularly the Irish evidence. Naturally the Great Hunger is the most dramatic single episode in the entire work, and Dr Salaman does full justice to his tragic theme, concluding with the observation that in Ireland 'the potato ended in wrecking both exploited and exploiter'. Elegantly written, with numerous vivid anecdotes, Salaman's History has long enjoyed the status of a classic. This revised impression, with a new introduction and emendations by Professor J. G. Hawkes, enables another generation of readers to sample what Eric Hobsbawm has referred to as 'that magnificent monument of scholarship and humanity'.
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Just as it is impossible to discuss intelligently the history of the potato without a reference to those early agriculturists who won and fashioned it, so would it be futile were we to leave undescribed the peculiar setting in which both plant and man evolved their mutual understanding. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
Just as it is impossible to discuss intelligently the history of the potato without a reference to those early agriculturists who won and fashioned it, so would it be futile were we to leave undescribed the peculiar setting in which both plant and man evolved their mutual understanding. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
This is the definitive study of the history of the potato. I first read this book in the mid-1980s. I was working with the then Education Secretary Kenneth Baker on the development of the national curriculum. As a big fan of the noble tuber, he was keen to ensure that Potato Studies was a compulsory subject in secondary schools - including history of the potato, practical modern usage (such as the then fashionable potato print painting method) and nutritional value. I remember visiting his office, where he kept on display a fine collection of dried potatoes - Anyas, King Edwards, Kerr's Pinks; he even let me touch his prize Maris Piper. Of course, in the end this dream was to come to nothing and Potato Studies was replaced by History. I think there a still a few schools in Norfolk that teach it.
This is a wonderful book. It is beautifully written with full colour illustrations and pop-ups.
This is a wonderful book. It is beautifully written with full colour illustrations and pop-ups.
Format:Paperback
First published in 1949 and showing its age. So much new research has been done that Salaman's arguments (and even his facts) now seem questionable. Moreover, he tackles his subject in grossly excessive detail, virtually recapitulating the whole of Irish, Scottish, Welsh and English history merely to show where the potato fits in. It amazes me this book is still in print, and perhaps it shouldn't be. The history of the potato needs a succinct, to-the-point rewrite for the 21st century. Salaman's book, I'm afraid, is a historical artefact in its own right.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
2 reviews
16 of 18 people found the following review helpful
This is the best of the potato history books.
13 Aug 1998
Format:Paperback
Redcliffe Salaman chronicles the history of the potato from prehistory through modern times with the vehemence and passion of a zealot. This book contains a tremendous amount of information about the cultures that have made use of the potato as well as all you could ask about the noble tuber itself, including dietary and cultivation information. Here, in a book about spuds, you'll learn plenty about human nature, the nature of civilizations, and even art.
Bill's Opinion
14 April 2010
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Very scholarly and extremely interesting. The roots (no pun intended) of modern civilization have
more to do with the potato than I could ever have imagined. The South American historical speculations
are riveting and with the more recent archeological discoveries in that part of the world this book's
relevance is more fascinating now than when it was written some 50 or so years ago. A classic in every
sense of the word.
more to do with the potato than I could ever have imagined. The South American historical speculations
are riveting and with the more recent archeological discoveries in that part of the world this book's
relevance is more fascinating now than when it was written some 50 or so years ago. A classic in every
sense of the word.
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