The Invention of Humboldt is a game-changing volume of essays by leading scholars of the Hispanic world that explodes many myths about Alexander von Humboldt and his world. Rather than âfollow in Humboldtâs footstepsâ this book outlines the new critical horizon of post-Humboldtian Humboldt studies: the archaeology of all that lies buried under the Baronâs epistemological footprint. Contrary to the popular image of Humboldt as a solitary âadventurerâ and âhero of scienceâ surrounded by New World nature The Invention of Humboldt demonstrates that the Baronâs opus and practice was largely derivative of the knowledge communities and archives of the Hispanic world. Although Humboldtian writing has invented a powerful cult that has served to erase the sources of his knowledge and practice in truth Humboldt did not âinvent natureâ nor did he pioneer global science: he was the beneficiary of Iberian natural science and globalization. Nor was Humboldt a pioneering âpostcolonialâ cultural relativist. Instead his anthropological views of the Americas were Orientalist and historicist and in most ways were less enlightened than those of his Creole contemporaries. This book will reshape the landscape of Humboldt scholarship. It is essential reading for all those interested in Alexander von Humboldt the Hispanic American enlightenment and the global history of science and knowledge. . Language: English