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The rhinoceros is an iconic animal. Three species once inhabited South Asia, two of which disappeared over a century ago. This survey aims to reconstruct the historical distribution of these large mammals resulting in new maps showing the extent of their occurrences. Thousands of sources varied in time and nature are used to study the interactions between man and rhinoceros. The text is supported by over 700 illustrations and 38 maps showing the importance of the rhinoceros in the scientific and cultural fabric of Asia and beyond.
This book has been nominated for the SHNH Natural History Book Prize (John Thackray Medal), awarded for the best book published on the history or bibliography of natural history.
This book has been nominated for the SHNH Natural History Book Prize (John Thackray Medal), awarded for the best book published on the history or bibliography of natural history.
Price: $372.00
Pages: 836
Publisher: Brill
Imprint: Brill
Publication Date:
05 June 2024
ISBN: 9789004544888
Format: Hardcover
"Eloquently written with a wealth of absorbing detail about Asian rhinos [...], and outstanding illustrations, this is a magnificent encyclopedic publication.
[...] This book is a labour of love, and combines academic precision with a clear writing style, presenting many absorbing anecdotes and stories.
[...] I cannot recommend Rookmaaker’s new book highly enough, for rhino researchers, those interested in art and history, and of course conservation, in South Asia, and indeed all enthusiasts wishing to increase their knowledge about the three ancient rhino species of Asia." – Lucy Vigne, in: Pachyderm, Volume 65 (2024), pp. 193-199
"Packed with information and abundantly illustrated, The rhinoceros of South Asia is the new standard reference on the history of three species of rhinoceros known from South Asia [...].
The rhinoceros of South Asia is not a traditional natural history of the three rhinoceros species that inhabited the region. Rather, it is a rich and complex account of the changing relationship between rhinoceroses and people seen through the perspectives of history, different cultures and the increasing rarity and extirpation of at least two species." – Andrew C. Kitchener, in: Archives of Natural History, Volume 52, Issue 1 (April 2025), pp. 223-224
"It is often said that ‘the devil is in the detail’. Allow me to take the liberty of turning this around: in the case of this work, God is in the detail.
[...] The reviewer, a historian of animals for the past three decades, finds this book to be the most comprehensive and instructive account ever written on the three species of rhinos and the reviewer can say with confidence that it shall remain the definitive source." – Divyabhanusinh, in: Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society, Volume 122, Issue 3 (Sep.-Dec. 2025)
[...] This book is a labour of love, and combines academic precision with a clear writing style, presenting many absorbing anecdotes and stories.
[...] I cannot recommend Rookmaaker’s new book highly enough, for rhino researchers, those interested in art and history, and of course conservation, in South Asia, and indeed all enthusiasts wishing to increase their knowledge about the three ancient rhino species of Asia." – Lucy Vigne, in: Pachyderm, Volume 65 (2024), pp. 193-199
"Packed with information and abundantly illustrated, The rhinoceros of South Asia is the new standard reference on the history of three species of rhinoceros known from South Asia [...].
The rhinoceros of South Asia is not a traditional natural history of the three rhinoceros species that inhabited the region. Rather, it is a rich and complex account of the changing relationship between rhinoceroses and people seen through the perspectives of history, different cultures and the increasing rarity and extirpation of at least two species." – Andrew C. Kitchener, in: Archives of Natural History, Volume 52, Issue 1 (April 2025), pp. 223-224
"It is often said that ‘the devil is in the detail’. Allow me to take the liberty of turning this around: in the case of this work, God is in the detail.
[...] The reviewer, a historian of animals for the past three decades, finds this book to be the most comprehensive and instructive account ever written on the three species of rhinos and the reviewer can say with confidence that it shall remain the definitive source." – Divyabhanusinh, in: Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society, Volume 122, Issue 3 (Sep.-Dec. 2025)
Leendert Cornelis (Kees) Rookmaaker, Ph.D., University of Utrecht (1989), is a retired historian of zoology. His various interests are expressed in over 260 publications, including 12 books like The Zoological Exploration of Southern Africa (1989), François Levaillant and the Birds of Africa (2004), and The Rhinoceros in Captivity (1998). He is the editor of the comprehensive online Rhino Resource Center.