Conquest of the North Atlantic

<p>The early voyages into the deep waters of the Atlantic rank among the greatest feats of exploration. In tiny fragile vessels the Irish monks searched for desolate places in the ocean in which to pursue their vocation; their successors the Vikings with their superb ship-building skills created fast sea-worthy craft which took them far out into the unknown until they finally reached Greenland and America. G.J. Marcus looks at the history of these expeditions not only as a historian but also as a practical sailor. Besides the problem of what these early explorers actually achieved he poses the even more fascinating question of how they did it without compass quadrant or astrolabe. From the opening descriptions of the launching of a curach on the Aran Islands through the great pages of the Norse Sagas describing the first recorded sighting of America the author brilliantly conveys the excitement and danger of the conquest of the North Atlantic in a narrative that is based equally on scholarly research and sound seamanship. G.J. MARCUS's previous books include The Maiden Voyage on the sinking of the Titanic.</p>