Famous Finds and Finders: Searching for the Past
A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection
This engaging book for young adventurers features 40 historical discoveries, from tiny artifacts to entire cities, including the people and circumstances behind their uncovering.
In Famous Finds and Finders, young readers are taken on an adventurous journey back through time as they learn about the field of archeology and its role in uncovering the secrets of our past. Emphasizing the importance of preserving and recording moments in history, it encourages children to consider their own place in the ongoing story of humanity.
Kids will also learn about the tools and techniques (from crude to state-of-the-art) that archeologists and paleontologists use, as well as about the challenges they face in uncovering fragments of the past buried in the ground or under the ocean.
The discoveries are divided into 5 categories:
- People and Animals
- Towns and Cities
- Works of Art
- Under the Sea
- Underground
Sections include:
- Tutankhamun's Tomb: An Ancient Egyptian burial chamber discovered by archeologist Howard Carter in 1922, famous for its magnificent treasures.
- Lascaux: A complex of caves in France containing some of the most well-preserved prehistoric cave paintings in the world, discovered in 1940 by exploring four teenagers.
- The Titanic: A British luxury passenger liner that sank in the North Atlantic Ocean in 1912 after colliding with an iceberg, resulting in the loss of many lives.
- Lucy: A partial skeleton of a female Australopithecus afarensis hominin, discovered in Ethiopia in 1974 by a paleoanthropologist from the University of Cleveland.
- Ötzi the Iceman: The mummy of a man who lived around 3,300 BCE, discovered in 1991 in the Alps by hikers who thought he was a deceased modern climber.
- Whydah Gally: A pirate ship discovered by an underwater explorer off the coast of Cape Cod in 1984.
- Terracotta Army: A collection of earthen sculptures depicting the armies of the first Emperor of China, discovered by local farmers in 1974.
- Miss Ardi: The oldest known hominid skeleton, providing insights into human evolution.
- Chinchorro Mummies: The oldest artificially preserved human remains, found along the coast of present-day Chile and Peru.
- Altai Princess: The well-preserved mummy of a young woman who lived over 2,500 years ago in Siberia.
- Sue the Rex: The most complete and best-preserved Tyrannosaurus rex fossil ever discovered.
- Angkor Wat: A historic temple complex in Cambodia built in the 12th century - one of the largest religious monuments in the world.
- Pompeii: A Roman city destroyed by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79, preserving it and providing insight into ancient Roman life.
- Troy: An ancient city in Turkey, best known for the Trojan War described in Homer's epic poem, The Iliad.
- Babylon: A city in ancient Mesopotamia, located in present-day Iraq, known for its legendary Hanging Gardens.
- Port Royal: A major center for piracy and commerce in the Caribbean, destroyed by an earthquake in 1692.
- Bust of Nefertiti: A sculpture of the Egyptian Queen Nefertiti, created in the 14th century BCE and discovered in 1912 by a German archeologist.
- The Venus de Milo: The Venus de Milo is an ancient Greek statue of Aphrodite, discovered by a poor farmer on the island of Milos in Greece in 1820.
- Lighthouse of Alexandria: One of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, constructed in the 3rd century BC on the island of Pharos in Alexandria, Egypt.
This book highlights some of the most significant archeological discoveries of all time, introducing young readers to some of the key figures in the field. It provides a fun and engaging way for children to learn about historical discoveries and the people who made them, and will inspire them to continue exploring the world with a sense of wonder and curiosity.
Filled with evocative illustrations and informative content, Famous Finds and Finders is perfect for children aged 9-12 who are curious about history and the world around us. Whether they are a student of history, a budding archeologist, or simply curious about the world around us, this book is the perfect introduction to the fascinating world of archeology.
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Become an affiliateTom Velcovsky is a graduate of Audiovisual Production from the Silesian University in Opava, Czech Republic, where he specialized in screenwriting and storyboards. Before switching to children's books and the making of comic strips, he worked in advertising.
Stepanka Sekaninova used to work as a TV reporter and in the production of children's programs. Now she is a writer and an editor-in-chief, living in the Czech Republic.
Adam Wolf is a self-taught artist with a wide range of artistic skills including analog and digital photography, tattooing, digital and classical illustration, and canvas painting. Having been interested in various creative activities since his early years, he studied photography at the Prague School of Photography, and these days he enjoys illustrating children's books. He was born in Pardubice, Czech Republic in 1981.
A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection
"Children 8 and older will find all sorts of intriguing sights and role models in "Famous Finds and Finders," an enthusiastic and accessible sampling of notable discoveries--bones, treasures, lost cities--compiled and written by Tom Velčovský and Stěpánka Sekaninová. The entries in this oversize gallimaufry represent findings from such a vast range of places and eras that the authors seem gleefully to have thrown in every goodie that came to mind, from the Dead Sea Scrolls to the ruined Cretan palace at Knossos (see right) to a Druidic bust from the Czech Republic to a sunken Nazi warship at the bottom of the North Sea. Each of the 40 phenomena is accompanied by a handful of factoids and a small map to show where it was found, but prime of place goes to Adam Wolf's satisfyingly melodramatic illustrations." --The Wall Street Journal
"I'll confess that this next book is the kind of pure, rarified nerd-fare that 12-year-old me would have totally have adored." --Betsy Bird, A Fuse #8 Production - A School Library Journal Blog
Selected for the CBC's 2023 November Hot Off The Press Reading List
"It's amazing how much information is included in such limited space. Enough of a description is given to not only tell the story of the discovery, but pique the interest of the readers and encourage them to learn more." --Maria Touet, Malden Catholic High School, Malden, MA (Youth Services Book Review)
"What a fun read! This book will take you all over the place with awesome locations, and the history behind them - as well as the person who discovered each site! Great for kids who are interested in history, this will give them the chance to look into several different cultures and some of the treasures that were found at each location." --Rebecca Hill, Blogger
"This is a fascinating book of information on famous archeological finds. I learned a lot of things I didn't know, and my 9-year-old found it all very interesting." --Shilo Quetchenbach, NetGalley Reviewer
"Young me would have been all over this. Current aged me was all over this. A fun and inviting look at artifacts that is sure to pique curiosity." --NetGalley-Librarian
"A solid exploration of the world of discovery. Each short section introduces a find or an explorer. We learn about how the discovery was made, the place it held in history, and how it was lost." --Martha D., NetGalley Reviewer
"Famous Finds and Finders is an informative read, with a great deal of well organized information. I wish I had found this book when I was a young reader, as I would have loved getting a real look at the discoveries made, tools used, and maps detailing pertinent information." --Sharon Tyler, NetGalley-Reviewer
"Famous Finds and Finders: Searching For The Past is an informative and engaging book that focuses on archeological discoveries through the years. One thing I especially like about it is that each artifact is associated with a discoverer. Wolfe's illustrations bring the stories to life, depicting historical figures, artifacts, and landscapes in an engaging and informative way. Learning is further enhanced by maps and timelines, which provide context and a visual representation of when and where events occurred. Famous Finds and Finders is targeted for readers 9-12 years old, but I can say on good authority that a 40 year old adult will love this book too!" --YA Books Central
"This incredible nonfiction work takes you on a journey through lost human civilizations, buried rulers, and so much more! With a peek into how archeologists and paleontologists work to make discoveries, this book emphasizes the importance of preserving history.It will take you on a journey all around the world to forty remarkle discoveries. It's split up into five different categories, including people & animals, towns & cities, works of art, under the sea, and the underground. It's also packed with incredible illustrations and maps. What a clever and engaging way to learn about the past!" --Fun Reads for Kids, IG