The mystery; excitement; and romance of whaling have fired the human imagination since ancient times. And although many books have been written about whales and whaling; few have presented as comprehensive a pictorial survey of the whale ships of all periods as the present mdash; and now rare mdash; volume. Over 200 vintage engravings; drawings; and photographs depict a magnificent fleet of barks; brigs; cutters; and other whaling vessels; including interior views and interesting details.Youll also find photographs and prints of actual whaling implements (blubber forks; harpoons; lances; cutting spades; etc.); whaling guns; boating implements; and other tools and equipment of the whalers of yesteryear. Additional pictorial highlights include a 1621 engraving of Mass being celebrated on the back of a whale; a wood engraving of the ship "Maria" of New Bedford built in 1782 (oldest whaler in the U.S. in 1853); a Currier and Ives lithograph of a sperm whale; "In A Flurry;" and a revealing series of prints documenting the whaler "Charles W. Morgan" of New Bedford.Most of the prints have been culled from private sources; especially the celebrated Macpherson and Forbes collections; and are generally inaccessible. They have been painstakingly reproduced here; making them widely available to anyone interested in this fascinating chapter of maritime history. George Francis Dow; one of this centurys foremost authorities on sailing vessels; selected the illustrations and contributed an expert; well-researched text outlining the history of whaling over three centuries; with special attention to the whaling industry of colonial New England.
#1037578 in eBooks 2013-02-21 2013-01-24File Name: B00A44MJI8
Review
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful. The dark side of that most mysterious and intriguing Inkling; Charles WilliamsBy D. KovacsThe remarkable Lois Lang-Sims passed away recently; which was enough toprompt this review. This book of letters is essential to giving a well-rounded portrait of this mysterious man. There seems to be agreement among the young women; like Lang-Sims;who experienced his controlled and slightly sadistic dark side that it was the mirror image of a man who also radiated an undeniable goodness; even holiness. The ability of Charles Williams to convey supernatural reality -- in a warmly blessed or in a chillingly evil way -- in his novels and other writing has been remarked on by many of his readers. Lang-Sims has her own way of conveying that which is basically impossible to express in words. It comes across not only in this book of letters but also in her own writing. If this review prompts even one reader to learn more; not only about Charles Williams but about Lois Lang-Sims herself -- and to benefit from the inner tradition that she so gracefully conveys in her own writing -- then the few moments it took to write this will be time well spent; with eternity in view.