Raymond John Howgego
Encyclopedia of Exploration 1850 to 1940: The Oceans, Islands & Polar Regions

A comprehensive reference guide to the history and literature of oceanic, island and polar exploration, travel and colonization, from the year 1850 to 1940. Please note that there is also a dedicated website for the book at www.explorersencyclopedia.com. There is more information about the book on the site, including full lists of articles, persons referred to in the text, and all ships' names that occur in the book. www.explorersencyclopedia.com is a permanent website devoted to the book, where any additions, corrections or other suggestions are welcomed. They can be submitted via the website, and all contributions will be moderated by Ray Howgego. Periodically updates will be issued as a single printable document which can be freely downloaded.

Quarto format (280 x 210 mm.), 704 pages; bound in cloth with a colour dustjacket.

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About the Book

With 521 major articles in the style familiar to readers of the first two parts of this award-winning series, Raymond Howgego's Encyclopedia of Exploration, 1850 to 1940: The Oceans, Islands & Polar Regions, continues the history of exploration, travel and colonization into the twentieth century. The index provides immediate access to the lives and achievements of nearly 3000 travellers, while the bibliographies cite more than 14,000 works of reference. Every expedition is placed firmly in its historical context, while the numerous cross-references serve to guide the reader between articles of similar content. Every entry is supplemented by a comprehensive bibliography of both primary and secondary sources.

About the Author

Raymond Howgego is an independent researcher, scholar and traveller, who has been researching the history of exploration for much of his adult life. His travels have followed in the footsteps of the explorers to most parts of the world - Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia, India, West Africa, South America, the Cape Verde Islands, Uganda and Ethiopia; and more recently overland from China to Tibet and across the length and breadth of Australia. His numerous excursions in search of local sources of information have afforded the opportunity to add to a lifetime's accumulation of travel literature. He has recently been appointed to the Council of the Hakluyt Society. Brian Turner noted in a recent article on the Encyclopedia that 'The soft-spoken physicist turned travel-scholar speaks and speed-reads every European language (except Basque and Finnish) plus Arabic, and has translated into English many travel narratives himself. Howgego is also a great serial traveller; he has stood at the same spot as Speke at the source of the Nile, sailed through the Straits of Magellan, and followed the tracks of the Conquistadors through Bolivia. In 1994 Howgego and his companions were the first Europeans to cross the Torugart Pass from Kyrgyzstan into China since the Russian Revolution. Minutes after his jeep had crossed an unstable section of Pakistan's precipitous Karakoram Highway, the road collapsed into the Indus. Ray has also voyaged down most of the world's great rivers, including the Niger in flood, when neither bank was visible. His favourite destination? "Kashgar is my centre of the universe". And favourite country? "Iran; the Zoroastrian monasteries of central Iran fascinate me and the Islamic architecture of Esfahan is heart-stoppingly beautiful"'.

Reviews

Kindly Reproduced with permission: 358 Symbolism Raymond John Howgego. Encyclopedia of Exploration to 1800: A Comprehensive Reference Guide to the History and Literature of Exploration, Travel and Colonization from the Earliest Times to the Year 1800. Potts Point, NSW: Hodern House, 2003. xv + 1168 pp. Encyclopedia of Exploration, 1800 to 1850: A Comprehensive Reference Guide to the History and Literature of Exploration, Travel and Colonization Between the Years 1800 and 1850. Potts Point, NSW: Hodern House, 2004. xi + 690 pp. The two volumes of the Encyclopedia of Exploration published so far run up to a staggering 1900 pages printed in two columns; a third volume for the years 1850 to 1920 is announced. These hefty tomes contain a dazzling kaleidoscope of travelers, explorers, adventurers, seafarers, wanderers, pioneers, missionaries, conquerors, and whoever else felt called upon to leave their homes and set out on voyages into lands and seas unknown. If it were possible to draw the lines of all the travels and explorations in this encyclopedia on a world map, an incredible number of criss-crossing itineraries would result in a thick texture of human movements covering the entire globe. This web of voyages would have its richer patches where generation after generation of explorers have crossed again and again, and areas where the threads of travel remain scarce and where explorers have rarely ventured. This web of voyages which could be constructed from Howgego's Encyclopedia would also be built up by layers upon layers of travel through historical times, with explorers crossing the same areas at different periods, from different directions and starting out from different cultures, for which they opened a particular region to various forms of appropriation. The texture of exploration around the globe thus also becomes a text and a palimpsest where earlier journeys, landfalls, and sign-postings can be glimpsed, often despite their erasure and superscriptions by later generations of travelers. The numerous reviews that have already appeared, many of which have been charted on the Encyclopedia's special website (www. explorersencyclopedia.com) all agree (as in so many other positive comments on this project) in pointing out the sheer enormity of the awe-inspiring size of this publication. The first volume has no less than 2,327 articles, 20,000 bibliographic citations, and 4,000 cross Book Reviews 359 references. The second, slimmer volume still runs up to 732 major articles and has references to 3,000 travelers and lists 1,000 ships, with half the number of bibliographic citations compared to the first volume. Although the volume division, so far, follows the conveniences of the decimal system by using centuries and half-centuries as periods, the author also takes care to show that these decisions are not based on numeric arbitrariness, but also rest on sound historical consideration. Thus, volume one ends with the year 1800 because, as Howgego explains in the introduction, "almost the entire temperate coastline of the world had been charted to a relatively high degree of accuracy" by that time (I, xiii). A high degree of accuracy can also be claimed for this periodization, as Howgego immediately points out that the only significant gap left in this cartographic knowledge was filled just three years into the new century. By 1800, Howgego argues, "the demise of the fabulous in favour of the scientific" had been completed and a turning point in the approach to map making had been accomplished. The "there be dragon"-signs had vanished from the maps. The circumference of the second volume has been chosen with equal care. For Howgego, the year 1850 "represented the conclusion of a distinct period of exploration and European colonial expansion" (II, vii). As with the coast lines at the end of the period marked by the first volume, most of the land masses, with the exception of some parts of the African Continent, had been charted by the end of the period covered by the second volume of the Encyclopedia. Howgego concludes: "Thus, by 1850, with the exception of Central Africa, the map of the world bore for the first time a strong resemblance to its current form" (II, vii). Nevertheless, the difference between the two volumes is not restricted to the vastly different stretches of historical time they cover. The selective grid used for choosing the material to be included had to be adapted with the developments in exploration and its documentation. Most of the changes that Howgego applies in the transition from the first to the second volume have their reason in the quantity of available sources. While he confesses to "relatively indiscriminate" inclusion of persons in his first volume, the second volume could not be put together on the same principle. Criteria of inclusion and exclusion were needed. As Howgego explains (II, viii), the distance covered by travelers now was taken into account. Thus, travelers from Europe who did not make it beyond the border of modern Turkey are excluded, as are those who simply went for a trip to the Mediterranean or, indeed, the northern coast of Africa. Beyond this redefinition of what counts as "exploration," the second volume also has a greater number of summary entries where, for example, "the history of the settlement of the eastern states and territories of 360 Symbolism the United States" is summarized. A balanced and clearly recognizable volume profile is the result, within which the principles of inclusion have been consistently applied. At least two things about this project are, however, even more amazing than its sheer size and the expert selection of the material it includes: first, that it still found a publisher prepared to produce it in book form; second, that it is not compiled by an editor coordinating the efforts of a worldwide network of specialist scholars, but that it is the work of a single author, Raymond John Howgego. On the first point, critical ripostes might question the practical advantages of several heavy volumes in comparison to a computer disc or other electronic formats that could make the masses of information contained in this encyclopedia readily available to a potentially much wider readership. Offering the Encyclopedia in an electronic format would also facilitate the use of its numerous cross-references, which have been added to the articles with incredible diligence and judgement. There may be sound logic to be put forward against this electronic alternative, but whatever arguments are found, they will be dwarfed by the sheer delight these beautifully produced volumes will engender in anyone with only the faintest traces of bibliophilia. Paper, print, and binding of the quarto-sized volumes are all of the highest quality. The dust jackets reproduce paintings in full color over the entire book front and spine, thus heightening the ornamental value of the series in the bookshelf of a study or living room alike and making each handling of a volume, together with the premium binding mentioned before, a sensuous pleasure. Although the volumes do not come two at a penny, their pricing at $295 AU and $245 AU respectively must clearly be counted as good value for money. The second surprise encountered by anyone opening the Encyclopedia for the first time is to find that it is actually the work of a single author, London-born Raymond John Howgego, who, according to the author profile on the Encyclopedia's website, spent some fifteen years in researching and traveling to complete it. Howgego studied physics and worked as a physics teacher before giving up this post in 1997 to devote himself entirely to his studies. Still, his professional training may still be glimpsed in his approach to his work, as he clearly continues to perceive himself more as a "scientist" (he uses the word "unscientific" in I, ix, instead of "unscholarly" or simply "inaccurate") than a literary "scholar," philologist or cultural historian. This, perhaps, is also the reason why the distillation of his research resulted in an encyclopedia, not a history. Knowledge here is alphabetically ordered, based on entries on individual explorers, and interlinked by sumptuous crossreferencing. Further elements of connecting the masses of snapshot Book Reviews 361 impressions of world travel and exploration provided here can be seen in the introduction, which gives a short survey of developments in "World Exploration" during the period covered by the respective volume. Coherence is also fostered by a number of survey articles, included in the alphabetical order of the Encyclopedia and listed in the introduction. Studying this list of "general articles" in the second volume (II, viii f), however, may cause critics to wonder whether the impression of a generally well-balanced approach in the first volume-where travelers from all parts of the world had been indiscriminately included-could be upheld for the second volume. While the 38 general articles listed here include such special cases as "Ascension Island" or a general bibliography for Antarctica under "William Smith," no fewer than twelve out of these 38 articles refer to the North American continent, and these almost exclusively to the US. Although a certain bias to Western exploration in the first volume can be observed, it does not appear as pronounced as this focus on America in the general articles of the second volume. Some critics may feel a creeping suspicion that the concerns of marketing the volumes in the US (with its well-funded libraries being the most important potential customers for this kind of book) would not have been entirely excluded in the "scientific" decision-making process that led to the list of general articles as it now stands. Nevertheless, the overall verdict for both volumes will still remain one of considerable balance and catholicity in the original sense of the word. It is certainly a masterly achievement and, in its inclusiveness and global scope, about as far as one man can possibly be expected to travel in a lifetime of study and exploration. No doubt, this series is a must for all university and major public libraries around the world. Klaus Stierstorfer Münster, FRG Prof. Dr. Klaus Stierstorfer Head of Department, Englisches Seminar Vice Dean, FB9: Philology Westfaelische Wilhelms-Universitaet Muenster Johannnisstr. 12-20 D-48143 Muenster Germany WHAT THE CRITICS HAVE SAID ABOUT THE ENCYCLOPEDIA SO FAR: "Exudes majesty...a towering work of scholarship..." Times Literary Supplement "The definitive reference book for anyone interested in the history of travel..." The Spectator "A prodigious achievement, the size of a telephone directory..." The Book Collector "A tour de force of descriptive, biographic and bibliographic documentation..." Choice Magazine, USA FERGUS FLEMING At the Edge of the World ENCYCLOPEDIA OF EXPLORATION 1850 TO 1940: THE OCEANS, ISLANDS AND POLAR REGIONS By Raymond Howgego (Hordem House, Australia 724pp AUD $245) ACCORDING TO THE blurb Raymond Howgego speaks every European language (except Basque and Finnish) and can also handle Arabic. Of itself this is enough to pull one up. Equally arresting is the use he makes of his talent. For Howgego is, aptly, an encyclopedist; and his chosen subject is exploration. In 2003 he produced Encylopedia of Exploration to 1800, a monumental tome that was the product of fifteen years' research and filled more than a thousand pages of print. It was followed a year later by a slightly smaller doorstep covering the years 1800-1850. 'The present volume provides a little over 10,000 bibliographic citations,' he explained, 'most of which are primary sources dating from what is a relatively brief period. The number probably exceeds the total of primary travel narratives written for all time before the beginning of the nineteenth century.' There you have the scale of the project. Now he has produced a third volume, Encyclopedia of Exploration 1850 to 1940. Given that it covers an even busier period than the last, he has confined himself to 700-odd pages on 'oceans, islands and polar regions'. A fourth, companion volume containing the other bits and pieces of the globe is to come. Like its predecessors, the latest encyclopedia is comprehensively fascinating. The time scale, however, seems odd: 1940 doesn't strike one immediately as a turning point in the history of exploration. A more obvious cut-off would be the 1920s, when the age of derring-do and eating your dogs was replaced by the less glamorous use of the internal combustion engine - when, too, the grand geographical schemes of the eighteenth century had been more or less completed. But, as the author explains, the opening of places such as Greenland, Antarctica and New Guinea was still underway. Rather than opt for a global full stop he has selected his parameters according to the current state of regional play. The flaw in this argument is that play continued well beyond 1940. Shackleton's 1914 plan to traverse Antarctica, for example, was not realised until 1958; Annapurna, Everest, K2 and other Himalayan peaks had yet to be conquered; Francis Chichester had yet to do his bit, as had a host of marine explorers and aviators. It was 1998 before Bertrand Piccard made the first circumnavigation by balloon, and 2003 before Pen Hadow became the first person to walk solo from Canada to the North Pole. The year 1940 was, however, a cultural and geopolitical watershed. One must assume, therefore, that it has been chosen in anticipation of a fifth (and maybe sixth) volume to cover the post-war period, By venturing so far towards the modern age Howgego faces the encyclopedist's ultimate nightmare: that of classification. Unlike earlier times, when almost anybody who went to a different continent or climate zone (or, sometimes, just a different country), could consider themselves an explorer of sorts, the late nineteenth and early twentieth, century saw an explosion, in both popular and private tourism. In these circumstances, where one person's odyssey is another's old bat, it is hard to draw a line between exploration and 'mere' travel, Howgego avoids the problem by not drawing a fine - or, at least, by placing it very faintly on the horizon. Practically everyone who didn't take a Thomas Cook tour seems to be here. In a rare moment of uncertainty he admits that, 'There are bound to be missing persons - private yachts - men, independent travellers and their like - who, despite the most extensive research, have eluded the author.' Possibly there are but I wouldn't bet on it. When he speaks of extensive research he means it. The first thing that strikes one on opening Encyclopedia of Exploration 1850 to 1940 is the daunting number of books that have been consulted. Take at random the entry for Wijnand Nicuwenkamp, a Dutch illustrator who worked in Indonesia. More than thirty books are cited under his name. Then there are James Sibree,the English missionary in Madagascar (twenty-one books), Eduard Toil, the Estonian geologist (seven), George Train, the US businessman and traveller (twenty-five). As for Paul-Emile Victor, the French ethnologist, he rates a reading list of fifty. When it comes to people we have heard of, such as Amundsen, Scott and Shackleton, the tally is endless. The result is a work of scholarship whose dry title belies the wit within. It contains not just a list of names, dates and places but a collection of biographical essays that offer intriguing nuggets of information. Of Carsten Borchgrevink's 1898-1900 expedition to Antarctica, for example, we learn that Sir Clements Markham, President of the Royal Geographical Society, detested him so much that he warned his Fellows that the man 'was incompetent, his ship was rotten, and that no self-respecting member of the scientific community should have anything to do with him'. As for the Japanese polar explorer Nobu Shirase (Antarctica, 1910-12), he spent the rest of his life paying off the expedition's debts before dying in 1946 of a blocked intestine, 'in a rented room on the second floor of Suzuki's Fish Shop at Koromo, Nishikamo county in Aichi prefecture, now known as Toyota City'. It's quirky details like these that make it more than your average reference book. Howgego's encyclopedias are something of a phenomenon. His Sydney publishers, Hordern House, have bucked every commercial trend by producing well-bound, beautiful books that are printed to the highest standard and built to last. They are the kind of book one wants not just to read but to own. The drawback is that they cost more than a hundred pounds apiece and aren't available on the High Street. Never mind. Search, the Web. Get them. Anyone interested in the history of the planet should have them on their shelves. Literary Review March 2008