The History of Shipwrecks [Hardcover]

Angus Konstam (Author), Claudia Pennington (Introduction)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 1999

Stories of shipwrecks, tragedy, treasure, and daring rescues have fascinated readers for centuries. Wherever in the world you may be, there are famous wrecks to discover and multitudes of valuable artifacts trapped within these undersea hulks. The History of Shipwrecks explores the exciting world in the depths and takes readers on a journey of underwater adventure. It traces the history of man and the sea, diving, treasure hunting, and archaeology; and it invites the reader to visit sunken Roman warships and Spanish galleons, colonial vessels, and twentieth-century luxury liners - all captured here in glorious full-color photography.

With sections on famous divers and their discoveries, as well as illuminating timelines and maps, this fascinating, authoritative book will stir the imagination of all armchair deep-sea adventurers.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A host of equally compelling maritime disasters that will enthrall."--Booklist

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

From the Back Cover

Stories of shipwrecks, tragedy, treasure, and daring rescues have fascinated readers for centuries. Wherever in the world you may be, there are famous wrecks to discover and multitudes of valuable artifacts trapped within these undersea hulks. The History of Shipwrecks explores the exciting world in the depths and takes readers on a journey of underwater adventure. It traces the history of man and the sea, diving, treasure hunting, and archaeology; and it invites the reader to visit sunken Roman warships and Spanish galleons, colonial vessels, and twentieth-century luxury liners - all captured here in glorious full-color photography. With sections on famous divers and their discoveries, as well as illuminating timelines and maps, this fascinating, authoritative book will stir the imagination of all armchair deep-sea adventurers. (9 X 12, 196 pages, color photos, b&w photos, maps, timelines)

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 196 pages
• Publisher: The Lyons Press; 1st edition (September 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1558219706
• ISBN-13: 978-1558219700
• Product Dimensions: 12 x 9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,498,874 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

With over 50 history books in print, Angus is a widely recognised and much-published historian. While he specialises in military and naval history he has also written numerous more general history books, designed to make the subject more accessible to a wider audience. Uniquely he has been able to draw on his expertise as a senior museum curator who has worked on both sides of the Atlantic, as well as on his academic training as a historian and as a maritime archaeologist.

His latest book is a full-length biography: Blackbeard: America's Most Notorious Pirate, which is published by Wiley & Sons. of New York (June 2006)

Angus is also just finished writing a history of the Allied landings at Salerno in September 1943 for the British publisher Pen & Sword, and he is currently working on a new project, with the working title of Supership: The Quest for the Renaissance Battleship.

Angus lives in Edinburgh, in Scotland.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Fascinating Journey, April 20, 2000

By 

cindy jordan - See all my reviews

This review is from: The History of Shipwrecks (Hardcover)

An excellent book for anyone with even a mild interest in shipwrecks. Great pictures and even maps. Great stories told of shipwrecks from every era. A great gift or coffee table book.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A "must read" for all martime historians & shipwreck buffs., April 6, 2000

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The History of Shipwrecks (Hardcover)

Published in association with the Mariners' Museum in Virginia and use maps, photos and color illustrations throughout to make for histories which are lively and probing, History Of Shipwrecks provides stories of shipwrecks and treasure locations around the world, from archaeology and treasure hunting to the history behind individual wrecks. An intriguing title.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Everyone makes a mistake., September 5, 2010

By 

Phil from Fargo (Fargo, North Dakota, USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The History of Shipwrecks (Paperback)

This book was a dazzling disappointment. It is poorly written and contains numerous errors, including some dates listed that are simply wrong. The organization of the chapters is poor, jumping from poorly covered topic to poorly covered topic. The style of the book is that of a 4th grade textbook. This book is really not worth the paper on which it is printed!