This book is available to read until 11th March, 2026
- 256 pages
- English
- ePUB (mobile friendly)
- Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub
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A History of Love and Hate in 21 Statues
About this book
From antiquity to the present day, this book offers a fascinating insight into the histories, movements and conflicts which have come to shape our world, viewed through the stories of the destruction of 21 statues.
Confederate soldiers hacked to pieces. A British slave trader dumped in the river. An Aboriginal warrior twice beheaded. A Chinese philosopher consumed by fire. A Greek goddess left to rot in the desert…
Statues stand as markers of collective memory connecting us to a shared sense of belonging. When societies fracture into warring tribes, we convince ourselves that the past is irredeemably evil. So, we tear down our statues. But what begins with the destruction of statues, ends with the killing of people.
This remarkable book is a compelling history of love and hate spanning every continent, religion and era, told through the destruction of 21 statues. Peter Hughes’ original approach, blending philosophy, psychology and history, explores how these symbols of our identity give us more than an understanding of our past. In the wars that rage around them, they may also hold the key to our future.
The 21 statues are Hatshepsut (Ancient Egypt), Nero (Suffolk, UK), Athena (Syria), Buddhas of Bamiyan (Afghanistan), Hecate (Constantinople), Our Lady of Caversham (near Reading, UK), Huitzilopochtli (Mexico), Confucius (China), Louis XV (France), Mendelssohn (Germany), The Confederate Monument (US), Sir John A. Macdonald (Canada), Christopher Columbus (Venezuela), Edward Colston (Bristol, UK), Cecil Rhodes (South Africa), George Washington (US), Stalin (Hungary), Yagan (Australia), Saddam Hussein (Iraq), B. R. Ambedkar (India) and Frederick Douglass (US).
A History of Love and Hate in 21 Statues is a profound and necessary meditation on identity which resonates powerfully today as statues tumble around the world.
Confederate soldiers hacked to pieces. A British slave trader dumped in the river. An Aboriginal warrior twice beheaded. A Chinese philosopher consumed by fire. A Greek goddess left to rot in the desert…
Statues stand as markers of collective memory connecting us to a shared sense of belonging. When societies fracture into warring tribes, we convince ourselves that the past is irredeemably evil. So, we tear down our statues. But what begins with the destruction of statues, ends with the killing of people.
This remarkable book is a compelling history of love and hate spanning every continent, religion and era, told through the destruction of 21 statues. Peter Hughes’ original approach, blending philosophy, psychology and history, explores how these symbols of our identity give us more than an understanding of our past. In the wars that rage around them, they may also hold the key to our future.
The 21 statues are Hatshepsut (Ancient Egypt), Nero (Suffolk, UK), Athena (Syria), Buddhas of Bamiyan (Afghanistan), Hecate (Constantinople), Our Lady of Caversham (near Reading, UK), Huitzilopochtli (Mexico), Confucius (China), Louis XV (France), Mendelssohn (Germany), The Confederate Monument (US), Sir John A. Macdonald (Canada), Christopher Columbus (Venezuela), Edward Colston (Bristol, UK), Cecil Rhodes (South Africa), George Washington (US), Stalin (Hungary), Yagan (Australia), Saddam Hussein (Iraq), B. R. Ambedkar (India) and Frederick Douglass (US).
A History of Love and Hate in 21 Statues is a profound and necessary meditation on identity which resonates powerfully today as statues tumble around the world.
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Yes, you can access A History of Love and Hate in 21 Statues by Peter Hughes in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in History & Architecture General. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.
Information
Table of contents
- Cover
- Title Page
- Contents
- Introduction: Lone and Level Sands
- Hatshepsut (Thebes, Egypt)
- Nero (Colchester, UK)
- Athena (Palmyra, Syria)
- The Buddhas of Bamiyan (Bamiyan, Afghanistan)
- Hecate (Constantinople, Byzantine Empire)
- Our Lady of Caversham (Caversham, UK)
- Huitzilopochtli (Tenochtitlan, Mexico)
- Confucius (Qufu, China)
- Louis XV (Paris, France)
- Felix Mendelssohn (Leipzig, Germany)
- The Confederate Monument (Portsmouth, Virginia, USA)
- Sir John A. Macdonald (Montreal, Canada)
- Edward Colston (Bristol, UK)
- Christopher Columbus (Caracas, Venezuela)
- Cecil Rhodes (Cape Town, South Africa)
- George Washington (Portland, Oregon, USA)
- Joseph Stalin (Budapest, Hungary)
- Yagan (Perth, Australia)
- Saddam Hussein (Baghdad, Iraq)
- B.R. Ambedkar (Vederanyam, India)
- Frederick Douglass (Rochester, New York, USA)
- Epilogue: Khaled Al-Asaad
- Acknowledgements
- Notes
- Bibliography
- Index
- Dedication
- Copyright