J.D. Lewis-Williams, one of the leading South African archaeologists and ethnographers, excavates meaning from the complex mythological stories of the San-Bushmen to create a larger theory of how myth is used in culture. He extracts their "nuggets," the far-reaching but often unspoken words and concepts of language and understanding that are opaque to outsiders, to establish a more nuanced theory of the role of these myths in the thought-world and social circumstances of the San. The book -draws from the unique 19th century Bleek/Lloyd archives, more recent ethnographic work, and San rock art;-includes well-known San stories such as The Broken String, Mantis Dreams, and Creation of the Eland;-extrapolates from our understanding of San mythology into a larger model of how people create meaning from myth.

J. D. Lewis-Williams

List of Illustrations Acknowledgements A note on pronunciation Prologue: A Broken String? Chapter 1: Myth in its San incarnation Chapter 2: Bringing Home the Honey Chapter 3: The Mantis makes an Eland Chapter 4: The Fight with the Meerkats Chapter 5: A Visit to the Lion's House Chapter 6: The Mantis Dreams Chapter 7: Narrating and Painting Chapter 8: People of the Eland Chapter 9: The Broken String Chapter 10: 'They do not possess my stories' References Index About the Author