Savages and Beasts

Now completely revised! A history of the modern zoo.

In this revised edition of Savages and Beasts, Nigel Rothfels traces the origins of the modern zoo to the efforts of the German entrepreneur Carl Hagenbeck, the most successful dealer in exotic animals in the nineteenth century. Building from his core business in animals, Hagenbeck eventually became even more famous for his large ethnographic exhibitions and circus ventures.

When Hagenbeck opened his Animal Park near Hamburg, Germany, in 1907, he brought together all his business interests in a revolutionary zoological park. He moved wild animals out of their cages and into “natural landscapes” and, in the process, invented a new way of imagining captivity. Through the use of theatrical scenery, the animals and people performing in his ethnographic exhibitions appeared to be living in their native lands. This revised edition addresses ethical concerns about the representation of indigenous peoples and animals and includes a host of new images and photographs.

By examining Hagenbeck’s enterprises, Savages and Beasts demonstrates how ideas about the role of zoos and the nature of animal captivity developed in the late nineteenth century. Rothfels provides a much-needed historical perspective on the connections between the development of modern zoos and their colonial histories.

Author Biography

Nigel Rothfels is a professor of history at the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee. He is the author of Elephant Trails: A History of Animals and Cultures and the editor of Representing Animals.