The Danakil Diary: Journeys Through Abyssinia, 1930-34 - Hardcover

Thesiger, Wilfred

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 000255710X ISBN 13: 9780002557108

Publisher: HarperCollins, 1996

Synopsis

In 1930 Wilfred Thesiger attended the coronation of HIM Haile Selassie in Addis Ababa, at the Emperor's personal invitation. Afterwards he spent a month hunting alone in the hostile Danakil desert of Abyssinia (now Ethiopia), a thrilling experience which led three years later to his successful exploration of the Awash River. Today he still regards this expedition as the most dangerous he ever undertook.
Aged only 23, Thesiger became the first European to travel through the fabled Sultanate of Aussa, a forbidding land where two Italian expeditions and an Egyptian army had previously been wiped out by Danakil tribesmen. Thesiger's remarkable journey solved one of Africa's last remaining geographical mysteries, and established the reputation of a man now considered by many to be the century's greatest living explorer.
A vivid, compelling narrative, The Danakil Diary records how the young Thesiger surmounted overwhelming obstacles and survived the constant threat of death and mutilation by the Danakil, warriors whose tribal status depended on the number of men they had killed and castrated. He portrays the often beautiful, savage landscapes; their varied wildlife; and the strange, sometimes cruel customs of the Danakil, never before observed in such intimate detail.
Interspersed with letters to his mother, Thesiger's diary is illustrated with original sketch-maps and drawings, and many of his previously unpublished photographs.

About this title

About the Author:

The Danakil journeys were Thesiger's first major expeditions. He served during the war with the SAS and was awarded the DSO. He has travelled in Southern Arabia, Kurdistan, Iraq, the Hindu Kush, the Karakorams, Morocco, Abyssinia, Kenya and Tanganyika. His journeys have won him many medals, and in 1968 he was made CBE. He was honoured with a KBE in 1995.

About this edition

• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Publication date: 1996
• ISBN 10: 000255710X
• ISBN 13: 9780002557108
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 214