the 1846 European travel journal of Heinrich Schliemann: a transcription and annotated translation

Thanos, Christo | Paperback / softback | 13-03-2013 | 9789088900877 |
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Heinrich Schliemann (1822-1890), a shrewd trader and later in life one of the best known archaeologists of the 19th century, made many travels around the world. He recorded his experiences in several diaries. This publication is a transcription and translation of Schliemann’s first travel diary: his European journey in the winter of 1846/47.

This journey was his first as a commercial trader and through the diary he kept we get to know Heinrich Schliemann more as a tourist and human being than as a trader. From his new residence in Moscow he travelled to London and Paris and via Berlin back to St. Petersburg. He writes with admiration and amazement about buildings and the emerging industrialization, while indirectly he offers us a glimpse of the poverty and filthiness of that time. He describes his visits to amongst others the theatre, the British Museum, the Champs Elysées, and the Louvre. Besides the many pleasant experiences, he also mentions negative aspects such as the theft of his hat and the seasickness that plagued him during every one of his sea voyages.

The original diary was written in English and French and for a small part in Italian. “Without having seen the Queen” comprises an introduction to the diary, a transcription of the diary, and a full English translation with annotations. This publication unlocks Schlieman’s first travelogue and presents a unique view of his life before rising to fame as the discoverer of Troy.