About Then & Theory
A publication about the past: what happened, and how we know. We make short films and editions printed with our artwork.
The promise
Some of it we know. Some of it is theory. We'll always tell you which.
Who makes this
Then & Theory is owned and published by Alterra Editions.
It also owns the films, the artwork and the editions.
How a case is made
We start from the evidence and build the story on it
- i.
Start from something real
Every story is built on evidence you could go and look at: a body in the ice, an X-ray, a flint arrowhead, a bone from a cave.
- ii.
Separate the known from the argued
When historians disagree, or a source is late or doubtful, the script says so.
- iii.
Say what's reconstructed
Our films use 3D reconstructions and illustration. We label them as such, and we never pass them off as photographs.
- iv.
Credit what we use
Photographs, models and maps are credited with their licences on each story.
What we cover
Human origins
Who we were before cities: the tools, the art, the other humans we shared the world with.
Archaeology
What the ground keeps, how it's found, and what a single object can prove.
Ancient world
Temples, libraries, harbours and empires, and how we know what we know about them.
Natural history & deep time
Fossils, extinct animals, lost landscapes and the ages before anyone was watching.
Where to go from here
EntranceThrough the doors and back through time, one take from today to a painted cave, stopping at each case.Visited
The galleriesOne gallery for each case: its film, its evidence, and what is still argued.Visited
All of timeOne zoomable wall from the Earth's formation to today, with every case on it.Visited
How we knowRadiocarbon, ancient DNA, X-rays, layers and old sources, to try for yourself.Visited
The collectionAll twenty plates on one wall, each with a label and a closer look.Visited
The shopThe plates, printed on tees, long sleeves and hoodies.Visited
Story cardsThe true story behind each plate, from the card in every parcel.Visited