Fossils and Evolution

Abstract

The lack of fossil evidence was incorrectly considered by Lyell to be a tacit agreement with his idea of nonprogression in evolutionary terms. This came under considerable stress as a workable hypothesis when Darwin had published his work on the origins of species. At this time, evolution was still very much a description of what was being observed in the fossil record, constructing a functional explanation to cover the known facts. While animal fossils were well-known and captured the imagination of the public throughout the nineteenth century, the study of palaeobotany was also accumulating data which added to our understanding of life and evolution. Chambers uses the fossil record to demonstrate the progression of simple to complex life, and ultimately man. Even though there was an implied idea of evolution, the activities and input of God were still assumed and acknowledged.

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