Book
Beyond the blue horizon : how the earliest mariners unlocked the secrets of the oceans / Brian Fagan.
Record details
- ISBN: 9781608190058 (hc) :
- Physical Description: xx, 313 p. : ill., maps ; 25 cm.
- Edition: 1st U.S. ed.
- Publisher: Bloomsbury Press : New York, 2012.
Content descriptions
| Bibliography, etc. Note: | Includes bibliographical references and index. |
Search for related items by subject
| Subject: | Navigation, Prehistoric. Ocean travel > History. Sea peoples > History. |
- Baker & Taylor
The best-selling author ofThe Great Warming provides a vibrant history of how early seafarers first mastered long-distance navigation with civilization-changing effectiveness, providing vivid descriptions of early ocean crossings by myriad cultures and how they came to understand the winds, tides and stars. - Baker & Taylor
Looks at the early development of navigation, examining how ancient humans discovered the secrets of wind, tides, and stars that allowed them to make long voyages that profoundly changed human civilization. - McMillan Palgrave
In Beyond the Blue Horizon, archaeologist and historian Brian Fagan tackles his richest topic yet: the enduring quest to master the oceans, the planet's most mysterious terrain. We know the tales of Columbus and Captain Cook, yet much earlier mariners made equally bold and world-changing voyages. From the moment when ancient Polynesians first dared to sail beyond the horizon, Fagan vividly explains how our mastery of the oceans changed the course of human history.
What drove humans to risk their lives on open water? How did early sailors unlock the secrets of winds, tides, and the stars they steered by? What were the earliest ocean crossings like? With compelling detail, Fagan reveals how seafaring evolved so that the forbidding realms of the sea gods were transformed from barriers into a nexus of commerce and cultural exchange. From bamboo rafts in the Java Sea to triremes in the Aegean, from Norse longboats to sealskin kayaks in Alaska, Fagan crafts a captivating narrative of humanity's urge to challenge the unknown and seek out distant shores. Beyond the Blue Horizon will enthrall readers who enjoyed Dava Sobel's Longitude, Simon Winchester's Atlantic, and Jared Diamond's Guns, Germs, and Steel.
