Irresistible North : From Venice to Greenland on the Trail of the Zen Brothers

by Di Robilant, Andrea

• ISBN13: 9780307269850
• ISBN10: 030726985X
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2011-05-24
• Publisher: Knopf

Summary

This delightful journey begins with Andrea di Robilantrs"s serendipitous discovery of a travel narrative published in Venice in 1558 by the Renaissance statesman Nicolograve; Zen: the text and its fascinating nautical map recreated the travels of two of Zenrs"s ancestors, brothers who explored the North Atlantic in the 1380s and 1390s. Andrea set out to discover why later, in the nineteenth century, the Zensrs" account came under attack as one of the greatest frauds in geographical history. Was their map-and even their journey, a century before Christopher Columbus-partially or perhaps entirely faked? InIrresistible Norththe author follows the Zensrs" route from the Faeroes to Shetland to Iceland and Greenland, greeted by characters who help unravel the enigmas in the Zensrs" account. The medieval world comes to life as Andrea guides us through a landscape enlivened by the ghosts of power-hungry earls and bishops of the old Norwegian realm, and magical tales of hot springs and smoking mountains. In this rich telling-an original work of history and travel book in one- the magnetism of the North draws us in as powerfully as it drew the Zen brothers six centuries ago.

Table of Contents

Prologue	p. 3
Making a Book	p. 10
Messer Nicolò	p. 31
Frislanda	p. 49
Zichmni	p. 69
Islanda	p. 94
Estotiland, Drogio and Icaria	p. 114
Engroneland	p. 135
Squaring the Circle	p. 154
Venetian Puzzle	p. 183
Postscript	p. 193
Acknowledgments	p. 197
Notes	p. 199
Select Bibliography	p. 207
Index	p. 215
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