The Oxford Companion to World Exploration - Hardcover

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 019514922X ISBN 13: 9780195149227

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 2007

Synopsis

Covering all aspects of global exploration, from Antarctica to the North Pole, The Oxford Companion to World Exploration examines the lives and expeditions of heroic and influential explorers. This coverage includes biographies, including Lewis and Clark, Ferdinand Magellan, Cheng Ho, Hernán Cortés, Ibn Battuta, Vitus Bering, and Christopher Columbus; national expeditions, including Portuguese, British, French, Chinese, Dutch, and Spanish; and navigational and marine sciences, such as navigational techniques, ancient and medieval navigation, ocean currents and winds, longitude, cartography, and aerial surveys. The Companion's temporal scope ranges from the ancient cultures of Egypt, Persia, Greece, Byzantium, China, Polynesia, and Rome, through to modern space exploration. The articles have been written by leading scholars from across the globe, utilizing the most current scholarship in the field of exploration studies.

The Companion contains 800 entries, supplemented by 150 black-and-white and 50 full-color photographs and maps. Annotated primary source materials, such as travel logs and personal letters, supplement select biographies. Each entry is signed by a leading scholar in the field, contains a bibliography for further reading, and is cross-referenced to other useful points of interest within the Companion. Published in association with the Newberry Library in Chicago, the Companion reproduces more than 100 images from that institution's world-renowned collection.

About this title

About the Author:

David Buisseret graduated from Cambridge University in 1964, and has since taught at universities in the West Indies and the United States. He currently teaches at the University of Texas at Arlington. Among his publications are: From Sea Charts to Satellite Images: Interpreting North American History Through Maps, University of Chicago Press, 1990; The Mapmakers' Quest: Depicting New Worlds in Renaissance Europe, Oxford University Press, 2003; Creolization in the Americas, Texas A&M Press, 2000; Jamaica in 1687, University of West Indies Press, 2006. He also the serves as the editor of Terra Incognitae, the journal of the Society of the History of Discoveries.

From Booklist:

*Starred Review* The subject of world exploration has produced a plethora of biographies, histories, and reference books, many written for grade-school students. Now Oxford, in association with the Newberry Library, has published an outstanding two-volume set for high-school and college students and adults. The Oxford Companion to World Exploration traverses the complete spectrum of world exploration, from the ancient world through current underwater and space exploration. Its 800 entries cover places, people, history, literature, myths, science, and organizations. The text is supplemented by 220 black-and-white and 75 color illustrations and maps, many taken from the Newberry Library's outstanding collection. Arranged in A–Z format, entries range from several paragraphs to 20 or more pages and are written by scholars who are experts on the subject. Each ends with cross-references and a bibliography of relevant books and articles. Boxed excerpts from explorers' journals, letters, and books accompany many of the biographical entries. The set also has a topical outline with all the entries listed under 16 subject categories, a directory of all the contributors, and a very comprehensive 100-page index. The well-written essays do more than just give the basic facts; they interpret the subject so its importance in the scheme of exploration is explained. The 27-page essay on Africa includes subentries on not only the history of exploration of the continent but also on geographical barriers to exploration, the role of indigenous porters and guides, and the motives of patrons and sponsors. The article on Alexander the Great covers not only the facts of his expeditions but also the literature of legends that grew up around his exploits and how these legends influenced later explorers. Entries on Atlantis, Chinese exile writers, El Dorado, Fictitious and fantastic places, Imagery of exploration,Travel literature, and more expand the concept of exploration and show how fiction and literature shaped views of foreign lands. At the same size and price, the Encyclopedia of Exploration (Facts On File, 2004) covers similar material. Both sets include articles on exploration of the different continents, with the Facts on File set giving a straight history, while Oxford tends to provide more interpretation of that history. The Facts On File set takes a more granular approach, with 950 entries for people as well as entries for subjects such as aerial photography and the American Geographical Society, while Oxford generally covers broader topics in fewer, longer articles. Even though both sets cover much of the same material, they bring out different aspects and facts on each subject so are not necessarily duplicative. With its articles on the literature and legends of exploration and travel, in addition to historical articles and biographies, The Oxford Companion to World Exploration is a valuable reference set that high-school, adademic, and public libraries should add to their collections. Jacob, Merle
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About this edition

• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 019514922X
• ISBN 13: 9780195149227
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 1072
• Editor: Buisseret David