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Skeletons on the Zahara; a True Story of Survival [from the accounts by James Riley, Master, and Archibald Robbins, crewman, of the Brig Commerce shipwrecked in 1815]

Skeletons on the Zahara; a True Story of Survival [from the accounts by James Riley, Master, and Archibald Robbins, crewman, of the Brig Commerce shipwrecked in 1815]

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Skeletons on the Zahara; a True Story of Survival [from the accounts by James Riley, Master, and Archibald Robbins, crewman, of the Brig Commerce shipwrecked in 1815]

by King, Dean

  • Used
  • near fine
  • Signed
  • first
Condition
Near Fine/Near Fine
Seller
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 5 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Sebastopol, California, United States
Item Price
£27.52
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About This Item

New York: Little, Brown & Co, 2004. First Edition. Near Fine/Near Fine. Signed by Author; [9.5x6.25in]; ix, 353 pp., notes, bibliography and index; No shelf wear to book or dust jacket. Archibald Robbins was a crewman on the brig Commerce under the Master James Riley. The ship sailed from Hartford for Gibraltar and then New Orleans In June 1815. The Brig was caught in a violent gale off the west coast of Africa and ran aground at Cape Bojador (coast of Western Sahara) in August 1815.

This book is a blending of the accounts by Riley and Robbins of the trials and tribulations of the crew in their unsuccessful efforts to avoid the Arab natives, whose customs and style are described, as well as the resourcefulness of the crew in surviving, the wandering in the Sahara and arrival in Northern Morocco, then populated by a mixed culture of chiefly Arabs and Jews, with many Christian slaves. They ultimately arrived in Tangier and the safety of the American consulate in Gibraltar.

The Riley and Robbins original books were a lively and informative narrative that were very popular issued many editions in the early 1800's.

Synopsis

While there have been numerous historical adventure narratives published, this is the first major work to take place in the greatest desert of all. King retraced parts of Captain James Riley's three-month trek through the desert, going for days consuming only camel urine and locusts. The book is rich with the sort of detail one could only get from being on the scene, in the heart of the desert.

Reviews

On May 15 2007, Gatorfan1 said:
Great story about survival on the Sahara in the early 1800s. A great read and educational too. I strongly recommend this for anyone who enjoys adventure. Great for teenagers too.

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Details

Bookseller
David Spilman Fine Books, ABAA & IOBA US (US)
Bookseller's Inventory #
13713
Title
Skeletons on the Zahara; a True Story of Survival [from the accounts by James Riley, Master, and Archibald Robbins, crewman, of the Brig Commerce shipwrecked in 1815]
Author
King, Dean
Book Condition
Used - Near Fine
Jacket Condition
Near Fine
Quantity Available
1
Edition
First Edition
Publisher
Little, Brown & Co
Place of Publication
New York
Date Published
2004
Keywords
Shipwreck, Slavery, Sahara desert, Arabs, ransom

Terms of Sale

David Spilman Fine Books, ABAA & IOBA

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About the Seller

David Spilman Fine Books, ABAA & IOBA

Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 5 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Biblio member since 2018
Sebastopol, California

About David Spilman Fine Books, ABAA & IOBA

David Spilman Fine Books, ABAA & IOBA is an online bookseller specializing in fine books, maps, publications, and ephemera related to Exploration, Adventure and World History with a focus on the Polar Regions, California and the American West. A particular interest is in the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration from 1895 to 1920's. Other areas of interest are in the Pacific Northwest, Alaska, and a little bit of this and that.

Glossary

Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:

Morocco
Morocco is a style of leather book binding that is usually made with goatskin, as it is durable and easy to dye. (see also...
Jacket
Sometimes used as another term for dust jacket, a protective and often decorative wrapper, usually made of paper which wraps...
Shelf Wear
Shelf wear (shelfwear) describes damage caused over time to a book by placing and removing a book from a shelf. This damage is...
Fine
A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...
First Edition
In book collecting, the first edition is the earliest published form of a book. A book may have more than one first edition in...

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