voyages of discovery in the Arctic
This is the story of the discoveries of the Arctic regions, from ancient times to the opening of the Northwest and Northeast Passages and the conquest of the North Pole. It began with the Greek Pytheas who, around 320 BC, undertook a journey north to Thule. Pytheas writes that Thule was six days' sail north of England, and he describes frozen seas and a wondrous midnight sun. In Norse times, the Vikings sailed on voyages of discovery in Arctic regions. They sailed to the Kola Peninsula and the White Sea, went to Iceland and discovered Greenland and Vinland. Later, others followed in their wake: Barents, Bering, Nordenskiöld, Peary, Cook, Franklin, Nansen and Amundsen. Here are told all the dramatic stories of the journeys to the inhospitable polar regions. There are accounts of heroism: Some of the explorers returned home in triumph and gained eternal fame, others perished in the icy wastes. The book is richly illustrated with historical images and maps. Many of the maps have not previously been published in book form.
