Hansen Thorkild Livres

A riveting account of a landmark expedition that left only one survivor, now back in print for the first time in decades. Arabia Felix is the spellbinding true story of a scientific expedition gone disastrously awry. On a winter morning in 1761 six men leave Copenhagen by sea—a botanist, a philologist, an astronomer, a doctor, an artist, and their manservant—an ill-assorted band of men who dislike and distrust one another from the start. These are the members of the Danish expedition to Arabia Felix, as Yemen was then known, the first organized foray into a corner of the world unknown to Europeans. The expedition made its way to Turkey and Egypt, by which time its members were already actively seeking to undercut and even kill one another, before disappearing into the harsh desert that was their destination. Nearly seven years later a single survivor returned to Denmark to find himself forgotten and all the specimens that had been sent back ruined by neglect. Based on diaries, notebooks, and sketches that lay unread in Danish archives until the twentieth century, Arabia Felix is a tale of intellectual rivalry and a comedy of very bad manners, as well as an utterly absorbing adventure. Arabia Felix includes 33 line drawings and maps.

Focusing on the Danish and Norwegian roles in the trans-Atlantic slave trade, this volume delves into the organization and key participants of the trade, particularly highlighting the connection to the West Indies and sugar plantations. It examines the Danish acquisition of islands and the rise of their trade during the 1770s and 1780s, when they controlled over ten percent of the total slave trade. The narrative also addresses the decline of the trade alongside the emergence of a European consciousness that ultimately led to abolition.

Focusing on the harrowing middle passage of the transatlantic slave trade, this volume explores the forced embarkation of enslaved individuals by remadors at Christiansborg. It vividly recounts the brutal conditions faced during the journey, highlighting the suffering and deaths that occurred en route. Additionally, the narrative delves into the subsequent auctions on St Thomas and St Croix, providing a poignant look at the human cost of the slave trade and the impact of Danish/Norwegian involvement in this dark chapter of history.

Skildring af fem danske videnskabsmænds, bl.a. Carsten Niebuhrs, tragiske ekspedition til Yemen 1761-1767. Rejsen, der varede næsten syv år, gav anledning til store opdagelser, som vakte opmærksomhed over hele samtidens Europa. Men den eneste, der vendte levende tilbage, var astronomen Carsten Niebuhr.

Thorkild Hansen proslul zejména svými dokumentárně laděnými romány. V cestopise Nešťastné putování do Šťastné Arábie vychází z autentických zpráv, korespondence a deníků šestičlenné výpravy, kterou v roce 1761 vyslal dánský král do Jemenu. Jeho vyprávění je jazykově úsporné a velmi dramatické, ostatně z šest let trvající výpravy se živ vrátil pouze jediný muž, ale dokáže být taky ironický a vtipný. Autorovi se zdařilo napsat nikoli „pouhopouhý“ popis útrap odvážných poutníků, ale cestopis s výrazným filosofickým základem a poselstvím čtenáři.