Seafaring Lore and Legend"A valuable and lively resource. Jeans sorts truth from fiction with a sure hand and does full justice to both."—Peter Stanford, President Emeritus, National Maritime Historical Society “A veritable sourcebook of nautical history, beliefs, and heritage. Every true mariner will get lost in this book.”—Boating Seafaring Lore and Legend is a storehouse of wonders for those who love the sea. From Noah’s Ark to Thor Heyerdahl’s raft, from Atlantis to the Northwest Passage, author Peter Jeans scours the ages and the seven seas for fanciful, inspiring, and bizarre tales of sea monsters, ghost ships, lost continents, castaways, pirates, explorers, superstitions, and customs. Discover the surprising truths behind:
This is a book you can open anywhere to savor for a few minutes or an afternoon. But be careful: it's easy to lose track of time at sea. |
From inside the book
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... seamen as Cape Stiff— or a cyclone in the Pacific or the Indian Ocean is driving you onto a rock-fanged lee shore, you are going to call on every prayer and superstitious belief known to man in the hope of saving your miserable skin ...
... seamen believe that no good will come to those who harm whales. Sharks, of course—what Spanish sea- farers called the tiburón—have never enjoyed a good press with sailors. A dead body on board is always cause for concern; it was once ...
... seamen as Fiddler's Green (chapter 19), where grog and to- bacco are to be had in plenty, there is merry music all the while, and the frolicking maids are comely and compliant. Who could ask for more? According to some commentators ...
... seamen doe call Castor and Pollux. But we had only one, which they take an evill signe of more tempest.” RICHARD HAKLUYT, VOYAGES AND DOCUMENTS Castor and Pollux are the two stars in the constellation Gemini (Latin = twins). They were ...
Contents
1 | |
13 | |
30 | |
3 Legendary Voyages | 43 |
4 Sea Quests of Old | 64 |
5 Maritime History | 85 |
6 Nautical Custom | 95 |
7 Life at Sea | 104 |
12 Navigable Waters | 206 |
13 Castaways and Survivors | 214 |
14 At Odds with the Law | 227 |
15 Sea Fancies | 246 |
16 Myth and Mystery | 254 |
17 Sea Monsters | 276 |
18 Wraiths of the Sea | 295 |
19 Superstition and Belief | 304 |
8 The Captain and His Ship | 134 |
9 A Murmuring of Men | 161 |
10 Big Ships and Battles | 176 |
11 Death and Disaster | 192 |
Sources and Notes | 329 |
Select Bibliography | 350 |
Index | 362 |