Tim Severin

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Timothy "Tim" Severin (* 1940 in Assam , India ) is a British adventurer , historian and writer . He is particularly known for his travels in the footsteps of historical personalities. Severin was awarded both the Gold Medal of the Royal Geographical Society and the Livingstone Medal of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society . He received the Thomas Cook Travel Book Award for his book The Sinbad Voyage .

Life

Born in India in 1940, Severin studied geography and history at Keble College in Oxford . During his studies in 1960 he tried with Stanley Johnson and Michael de Larrabeiti to retrace Marco Polo's journey by motorcycle. However, the attempt failed due to visa problems at the Chinese border.

Severin then undertook a series of trips and trips again to check that the legends were factually correct. To trace the legend of Sindbad , for example , he built a traditional Arab sailing ship in 1980, sewing its sails with coconut thread, and sailed from Oman to China. The trip, which was financed by the Sultan of Oman, Qabus ibn Said , he described in the book The Voyage Sinbad . In the book The Brendan Voyage he describes details of his research on the journey of an Irish monk who is said to have sailed from Ireland to Newfoundland in a leather curragh (see also Navigatio Sancti Brendani ).

In addition to books about his travels, Severin has also written historical novels, such as the Viking Series , which began in 2005 .

Works (selection)

  • Tracking Marco Polo (1964)
  • The Golden Antilles (1970)
  • The African Adventure (1973)
  • The Oriental Adventure: Explorers of the East (1976) - about European explorers in Asia
  • The Brendan Voyage (1978) - Sailing trip in a curragh from Ireland to Newfoundland
  • The Sinbad Voyage (1983) - Sailing trip in an Arab dhow from Oman to China
  • The Jason Voyage: The Quest for the Golden Fleece (1986) - Sailing trip from Greece to Georgia
  • The Ulysses Voyage (1987) - Sailing trip from Troy to Ithaca
  • Crusader (1989) - a ride from France to the Middle East
  • In Search of Genghis Khan (1991) - In the footsteps of Genghis Khan
  • The China Voyage (1994) - Across the Pacific in a bamboo boat
  • In Search of Moby Dick (1999) - In Search of Moby Dick
  • In Search of Robinson Crusoe (2002) - In Search of Robinson Crusoe

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ "Lecture with Tim Severin" , Newsletter of the Royal Geographical Society , October 20, 2009
  2. ^ "Tim Severin: The Norse Whisperer" , article in The Independent , January 21, 2005
  3. ↑ In Search of Robinson Crusoe by Tim Severin . Retrieved July 26, 2009.
personal data
SURNAME Severin, Tim
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Severin, Timothy (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British adventurer, historian and writer
DATE OF BIRTH 1940
PLACE OF BIRTH Assam , India