Product Description

Researching back into prehistory and into the earliest evidence provided by archaeology, this volume explores the varied lines of development from the most primitive watercraft to the first real seagoing ships, from Northern Europe, through the Mediterranean to the Near and Far Easts. It traces the most primitive forms of boats - rafts, skin boats and dugouts, for example - which developed ultimately into ships for trade, commerce and war. Apart from chapters on the craft themselves there are sections on related topics, including early pilotage and seamanship, and an evaluation of what modern reconstructions can tell us about the performance of ancient ship types. "The Earliest Ships" not only summarises existing information but has been produced by many of those whose pioneering work was responsible for the revolution in understanding in the first place.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #92533 in Books
• Published on: 2004-10-21
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 192 pages

About the Author
Seven of the world's leading experts on early shipping technology, maritime archaeology and culture contribute chapters. Consultant editor Arne Emil Christensen is Curator of the Archaeological Museum of the University of Oslo and is a major authority on the Viking period.

Customer Reviews

Exceeded my expectations
Superb!
This is a highly detailed account of the evolution of boats & rafts into ships - lots of detail, drawing heavily on archaeological evidence, without any wild assumptions about the supposed shape of the boats.

This is not a coffee table book, with lots of pretty pictures and large print, but a real source of up-to-the-minute detailed info for the scholar as well as the casual reader.

What is especially good, is that each chapter is written by the leading expert in that field, using the latest available data and supported with lots of photos/drawings to illustrate points.

However, this forces each chapter into a different written style and sometimes this comes across as a little 'heavy', but most are very fluidly written.

I am very impressed with the content, layout, presentation and production of this series (I have 6 of the books so far) and I would recommend this in preference to other comparable books.

Super
Sientificly written book which covers the early tries of mankind on the water to the great travells of the Vikings. You should be familiar with the technicus termini of wooden shipbuilding while reading this fantastic book.

Early ships
I found this an excellent introduction to early boats and ships. Our understanding of what people could do and how far they could travel in late pre historic and early historic periods is very conservative.