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India is blessed with a unique variety of fauna, not to mention other forms of life. If one were to look at its mega fauna alone, the country boasts of lion, tiger, leopard, elephant, bison, wild buffalo and rhinoceros-more specifically the Greater One-horned Rhinoceros, India's unicorn.
Two books have preceded this one in "The Story" series: one on Asia's lions and the other on Asia's elephants. The Story of India's Unicorn, written by three multidisciplinary experts in the fields of natural history, art history and archaeology, is an attempt at recording the history of the animal from prehistoric times to the present, as was done in the other two books. Lucidly written and aptly illustrated, it will be of interest to the historian, the art historian, the wildlife enthusiast and the general reader.
The natural habitats of all species of fauna and flora are under threat as a result of the present and ever-increasing pressure of the growing human population which stands today at 1.32 billion in India. The Greater One-horned Rhinoceros is endemic to the Indian subcontinent and it is entirely up to India, Nepal and possibly Bhutan to ensure that this species survives for all time. While the rhino at present enjoys a "return" of sorts in its remaining strongholds, it is hoped that The Story of India's Unicorns will generate awareness among a wider audience of the need for continuing and proactive protection of the animal and its habitat.
1 India's Unicorns, by Divyabhanusinh
2 Before the Written Word, by Shibani Bose
3 A Search through Antiquity, by Shibani Bose
4 The Unicorns and the Great Mughals, by Asok Kumar Das
5 At Large in Art and Culture, by Asok Kumar Das
6 Under British Rule and Beyond, by Divyabhanusinh
7 Resurrection of the Unicorn, by Divyabhanusinh
References
Appendix
Maps
Bibliography
Index
Divyabhanusinh is the author of The End of a Trail: The Cheetah in India and The Story of Asia's Lions. He is actively involved in conservation and was the president of WWF-India and Vice President of Bombay Natural History Society. He is a member of the Species Survival Commission, Cat Specialist Group of World Conservation Union (IUCN).
Asok Kumar Das is a leading and senior art historian specializing in the art of the Mughals. He has studied the Mughal collections of several museums around the world. He is currently a Tagore National Fellow for Cultural Research, working on the collection of drawings and paintings in the Art Section of the Indian Museum, Kolkata.
Shibani Bose is currently a visiting scholar in the Department of History, University of Minnesota. She received her MPhil and PhD from the Department of History, University of Delhi, and has taught at Miranda House, University of Delhi. Her publications include essays in edited volumes, and her forthcoming book Mega Mammals in Ancient India: Elephants, Tigers, and Rhinos is to be published by Oxford University Press.
