Treasure Hunt: Shipwreck, Diving, and the Quest for Treasure in an Age of Heroes [Hardcover]

Peter Earle (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0312380399 | ISBN-13: 978-0312380397 | Publication Date: July 8, 2008 | Edition: 1st

“A remarkable book, in which a very wide spectrum of human behavior is on show---from colossal gullibility on the one hand, to extraordinary ingenuity and determination on the other.” —The Daily Telegraph (UK)
    
     Treasure Hunt is the story of an obsession. Rumors of Spanish treasure, or gold and silver at the bottom of the sea, have been a part of maritime lore for centuries. In 1687, Captain William Phips brought back to port an incredible cargo---nearly forty tons of silver and gold---the treasure of the Spanish galleon Concepción, wrecked over forty years before on a coral reef in the middle of the ocean. The unimaginable had become real, and the great treasure-hunting boom had begun.
     Soon after Phips’s success, there were numerous expeditions that meant to emulate his stunning achievement. During that same time there was also a boom in the invention of crude and often very dangerous diving equipment. Many of these new projects were promoted on the infant stock market, where gambling and treasure hunting became closely connected with the birth of modern capitalism.
     By the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, treasure hunting had become a professional occupation, with a new breed of diver emerging. Much of their time was spent salvaging the wrecks of English and Dutch East-Indiamen carrying treasure to ?nance business in Asia. Ever since, men have been prepared to risk life and fortune in the search for underwater riches.
     The author of numerous books of maritime history, including The Pirate Wars and The Sack of Panamá, world-renowned historian Peter Earle returns with an extraordinary and little-known history---of outstanding bravery, of exceptional recklessness, and above all, of the unquenchable lust for treasure.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Wonderfully detailed.” ---San Antonio Express-News

“Earle is both swashbuckling and serious in this marvelous survey of piracy over 230 years.” ---The Oxford Times

“Fascinating . . . His scholarship is solid, and his telling of this complex story is lucid and well-paced.” ---The Sunday Telegraph (UK)

“A thoroughly entertaining read that dispels a number of myths and spins many a good yarn.” ---Daily Mail (UK)

“Illuminating . . . It is one of the virtues of Earle’s account that although he is declaredly on the side of law and order, and his overall theme is the final triumph of the maritime states . . . he is far from immune---as a more straight-laced historian might be---to the charms of the pirate life.” ---The Daily Telegraph (UK)

“Masterful . . . a much-needed reappraisal.” ---The Sunday Times (UK)

About the Author

Peter Earle formerly taught at the London School of Economics and is now Emeritus Reader in Economic History at the University of London. He is the author of more than a dozen books on English social and maritime history, including The Sack of Panamá, and The Pirate Wars, among many others. He lives in England.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 408 pages
• Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books / St. Martin's Press; 1st edition (July 8, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312380399
• ISBN-13: 978-0312380397
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.1 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #604,388 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another Gift from Earle, November 7, 2009

By 

Colonial Nerd (Madison, CT USA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Treasure Hunt: Shipwreck, Diving, and the Quest for Treasure in an Age of Heroes (Hardcover)

I have now read four books by Earle and each has been a pleasure. He combines a fluid and fast-moving writing style with an underlying academic rigor as reflected in his extensive use of original sources; all of which leaves a reader with a great sense of confidence in the end product. In this case, he has also chosen a subject with a fascinating cast of characters, and stories of stock-jobbing which help round out the picture of the high flyers who were involved in these dangerous endeavors. As with some of his other books, sources include archives outside England from ehich he gleans valuable additional perspectives

5.0 out of 5 stars Earle at his usual! Amazing read from the start!, January 1, 2012

By 

Robert L. Knecht (Cannon Beach, OR) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Treasure Hunt: Shipwreck, Diving, and the Quest for Treasure in an Age of Heroes (Hardcover)

I first read Earle's "Treasure of the Concepcion" many years ago when I was working with renowned shipwreck researcher Jack Haskins, who discovered Concepcion in the Archives in Seville. John Grissim's book about the same wreck is interesting, but unfortunately, Burt Webber (who lead the expedition in 1978) controlled so much of the content (Grissim was one of Webber's divers), and the way the story was told, you don't get an authentic version of the true story.

Earle is an exceptional researcher (he helped Haskins narrow down the location of the wreck when he discovered the log book of William Phipps in England), and a truly entertaining writer. He takes what could be a boring read about historical facts and turns the information into something you can almost touch. If you are fascinated by treasure hunting, and especially how it began, don't miss this book! It's hard to put down, and is an integral part of our research at the store!