Preface: Philippe Descola;\nIntroduction: Edward R. Landa, Christian Feller\nPart 1. Soil and the Visual Arts\n1.1 The representation of soil in the Western Art: from Genesis to Pedogenesis: Christian Feller, Lydie Chapuis-Lardy, Fiorenzo Ugolini; 1.2 Deforestation and erosion captured in historical art of the Pearl River Delta region, China: Walter E. Parham ; 1.3 Transcendental aspects of soil in contemporary visual arts: Nico Van Breemen; 1.4 Merging horizons - soil science and soil art: Alexandra Toland, Gerd Wessolek; 1.5 Soil colors, pigments and clays in paintings: Fiorenzo Ugolini; 1.6 In a supporting role: Soil and the cinema: Edward R. Landa\nPart 2. Under my feet-Soil presence and perspectives in the work of four contemporary visual artists\n2.1 Dig deeper: Margaret Boozer; 2.2 Creating fiber art with soil and rust: Lisa Kriner; 2.3 Soil, subsoil, priming and architectural design: Heinrich F. Jennes; 2.4 Art by the ground: Martine Lafon\nPart 3. Soil and Soul: Literature and Philosophy\n3.1 To join the real and the mental place: the written earth: Suzanne Mériaux; 3.2 \'Pochveniks\' - \'the poets of the soil\': The geological school of 20th century poetry in Leningrad, USSR (St. Petersburg, Russia): Paul Belasky; 3.3 The soil scientist\'s hidden beloved: Archetypal images and emotions in the scientist\'s relationship with soil: Nikola Patzel; 3.4 Comprehending soil within the context of the land community: Frederick Kirschenmann; 3.5 Core samples of the sublime - on the aesthetics of dirt: Alexandra Toland, Gerd Wessolek\nPart 4. Perspectives on Soil by Indigenous and Ancient Cultures\n4.1 European religious cultivation of the soil: Nikola Patzel; 4.2 \'Rock - stone\'and \'soil - earth\': indigenous views of soil formation and soil fertility in the West Indies: Christian Feller, Eric Blanchart; 4.3 Mobilizing farmers\' knowledge of the soil (Tanala region; East Madagascar): Domoina J. Rakotoson, Albert Rakotonirina, Georges Serpantié; 4.4 Ancient Maya perceptions of soil, land, and earth: E. Christian Wells, Lorena D. Mihok; 4.5 The soil memory: Case study of a Protohistoric archaeological site in Senegal: Bruno Chavane, Christian Feller\nPart 5. Soil and Health\n5.1 Soils and geomedicine: Trace elements: Eiliv Steinnes; 5.2 Do pedo-epidemiological systems exist?: Pascal Handschumacher, Dominique Schwartz; 5.3 \'Earth eaters\': ancient and modern perspectives on human geophagy: Peter Abrahams\nPart 6. Soil - the dark side and the light side\n6.1 Soil and warfare. C.E. Wood; 6.2 Yellow sands and penguins: the soil of \'The Great Escape\': Peter Doyle, Larry Babits, Jamie Pringle; 6.3 Soils and soil pioneers on stamps: H.-P Blume; 6.4 Soil in comic strips and cartoons: Anne Richer de Forges, Frank Verheijen, Dominique Arrouays, Eric Blanchart, Martial Bernoux; 6.5 Soils and terroir expression in wines: Cornelis van Leeuwen