Monkey

158 Pages·2013·5.62 MB·English

by  Desmond Morris

Monkey
Animal
Series editor: Jonathan Burt
Already published
Ant Charlotte Sleigh • Ape John Sorenson • Bear Robert E. Bieder Bee Claire Preston • Camel Robert Irwin
• Cat Katharine M. Rogers Chicken Annie Potts • Cockroach Marion Copeland • Cow Hannah Velten
Crocodile Dan Wylie • Crow Boria Sax • Dog Susan McHugh
Donkey Jill Bough • Duck Victoria de Rijke • Eel Richard Schweid Elephant Dan Wylie • Falcon Helen
Macdonald • Fly Steven Connor Fox Martin Wallen • Frog Charlotte Sleigh • Giraffe Mark Williams Hare
Simon Carnell • Horse Elaine Walker • Hyena Mikita Brottman Kangaroo John Simons • Leech Robert G.
W. Kirk and Neil Pemberton
Lion Deirdre Jackson • Lobster Richard J. King • Monkey Desmond Morris Moose Kevin Jackson •
Mosquito Richard Jones • Otter Daniel Allen Owl Desmond Morris • Oyster Rebecca Stott • Parrot Paul
Carter Peacock Christine E. Jackson • Penguin Stephen Martin • Pig Brett Mizelle Pigeon Barbara Allen •
Rat Jonathan Burt • Rhinoceros Kelly Enright Salmon Peter Coates • Shark Dean Crawford • Snail Peter
Williams Snake Drake Stutesman • Sparrow Kim Todd • Spider Katja and Sergiusz Michalski Swan Peter
Young • Tiger Susie Green • Tortoise Peter Young Trout James Owen • Vulture Thom van Dooren • Whale
Joe Roman Wolf Garry Marvin
Monkey
Desmond Morris
REAKTION BOOKS
Published by REAKTION BOOKS LTD
33 Great Sutton Street
London EC1V 0DX, UK
www.reaktionbooks.co.uk
First published 2013
Copyright © Desmond Morris 2013
All rights reserved
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by
any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of
the publishers.
Page references in the Photo Acknowledgements and
Index match the printed edition of this book.
Printed and bound in China by C&C Offset Printing Co., Ltd British Library Cataloguing in Publication
Data Morris, Desmond.
Monkey. – (Animal)
1. Monkeys.
I. Title II. Series 599.8-DC23
eISBN: 9781780231297
Contents
Introduction
1 Sacred Monkeys
2 Tribal Monkeys: Myths and Superstitions
3 Monkeys Despised
4 Lustful Monkeys
5 Monkeys Enjoyed
6 Monkeys Exploited
7 Monkey Quotations
8 Monkeys and Artists
9 Monkeys as Animals
10 Unusual Monkeys
11 Rare Monkeys
12 Newly Discovered Monkeys
13 Intelligent Monkeys
Timeline
Appendix 1: Classification
Appendix 2: Monkeys in the Language
References
Bibliography
Associations and Websites
Photo Acknowledgements
Index
Introduction
I recall with some embarrassment the day I walked into a shop and informed the
startled young woman behind the counter that a monkey had bitten off my
nipples. I asked her if she could supply me with replacements. Happily, she
could and I was able to fit them back in place so that the jets from my car’s
windscreen washers would once again be aimed in the right direction.
For some reason, monkeys in drive-through wildlife parks love leaping on
visitors’ cars and causing havoc. They pull and tug and bite at anything they can
get their hands around or their teeth into. In my case, it was the rubber nipples
that direct the jets of water at the glass when one presses the appropriate button
inside the car. Being soft and removable, they are favourite targets for the packs
of captive monkeys that are so popular today in modern safari parks. Baboons in
particular are adept at leaning down, clamping their large teeth on the rubber and
levering the nipple loose. They chew it and spit it out before moving on to some
other form of vandalism. They have done it before, of course, and they know
perfectly well that the object is inedible, but they still can’t resist meddling with
it.
This trivial activity somehow sums up the way most people see monkeys.
They are essentially mischievous beings. Indeed, the dictionary defines
‘monkeying’ with something as tampering with it, or playing mischievous or
foolish tricks.
Monkeys in a drive-through wildlife park.
Viewed negatively, this quality of monkeys sees them as a destructive
nuisance. Viewed more positively, however, it reveals them as playfully
inquisitive. Herein lies their importance. For it is an undeniable fact that the
most playful and inquisitive primate on the planet is the human animal. It is our
playfulness, lasting well into adulthood, that has been the underlying feature of
the human success story, rendering us the most powerful species on the planet.
Without our playful curiosity and our endless inquisitiveness, we would never
have become inventors, never have developed our amazing skills and our
advanced technologies.
We are lucky that monkeys, rather than some other kind of mammals, are our
remote ancestors. Because, over millions of years, we evolved from those
scampering, chattering, intelligent, treetop-living creatures, we had a good
starting point. Their inborn urge to explore things became the bedrock of our
sophisticated innovations. Their love of activity became our industrious pursuit
of knowledge.
We owe a great debt to our monkey ancestors. They set us on the right path,
the path that would take us from the treetops to the moon and, one day, beyond.
So they deserve a closer look.
1 Sacred Monkeys
In the West today it cannot be said that monkeys inspire reverence. We may
marvel at their acrobatics in the treetops, we may admire their often striking
markings and coat patterns, and we may laugh with them when they are at play,
but worship them we do not. In fact, we never have. The Western world has
either found them too amusing to be taken seriously, or too close to humans for
comfort. In earlier centuries we have been entertained by the monkeys of street
organ-grinders or we have seen them as some sort of horrid caricature of the
human condition. And, of course, Darwin’s earth-shattering idea that we might
actually be related to them made us even more ill at ease in their presence. In
other cultures, however, human attitudes towards monkeys have been entirely
different.1
In ancient Egypt the baboon was considered a sacred being and was treated
with great respect. In early India the langur monkey acquired an almost godlike
status and is still worshipped to this day, despite increasing complaints from
many members of modern Indian society. On the island of Bali today there is a
Sacred Monkey Forest where long-tailed macaques are treated as sacred animals
and allowed to roam around the temples there. In China and Japan there have
been a number of monkey deities in the past and, although in modern times they
have largely lost their power to inspire worship, they still play an important role
in oriental folklore.
The talismanic Barbary macaques on the Rock of
Gibraltar.
The only monkeys in the West that can boast any sort of mythological role are
the rather sad little colonies of Barbary macaques that eke out a living on the
Rock of Gibraltar. Among the human inhabitants of Gibraltar there is a firmly
held belief that if the Rock Apes, as they are known, ever leave, British control
of Gibraltar will end and the much disputed territory will revert to Spain. But
these cannot be thought of as sacred monkeys. They are little more than lucky
mascots, talismanic monkeys connected to a simple superstition. To find the true
simian deities one must travel to the other end of the Mediterranean, starting in
the Middle East and then moving on through Asia to the Far East.
EGYPT: THOTH, THE SACRED BABOON
The impressive figure of the male hamadryas baboon appears in many forms in
the arts of ancient Egypt, from tiny figurines to huge statues and from colourful
wall paintings to exquisitely carved reliefs. It is usually portrayed in a squatting
posture with its heavy mane of hair enveloping its muscular body like a regal
cloak. Between its legs its long penis is usually shown in a state of arousal,
pointing straight at the onlooker, presenting a sexual threat. Its strong jaws and
solemn expression add to the intensity of its image, making it a symbol of
unchallenged power and virility. It is little wonder that the early Egyptians held
it in such awe.2
Wall painting of sacred baboons from the tomb
of Tutankhamun.