Now available in paperback, The Past From Above presents stunning aerial photographs of 250 of the world's foremost archaeological sites. The photographer, Georg Gerster, has been shooting ancient sites from the air for more than fifty years. In this current collection, his subjects range from the temple complex at Karnak to the Great Wall of China, and from the Acropolis in Athens to Aztec palaces in Mexico. Gerster's photographs are technical achievements--often produced under hair-raising circumstances--in their own right but at the same time offer a unique visual history of mankind stretching back to the dawn of civilization. Charlotte Trumpler introduces the photographs with an overview of the critical role that aerial photography has played in archaeological research.