The Guiana Travels of Robert Schomburg

Publisher: Hakluyt Society

Publication Date: 2006

CA Library Reference: 16724

There is an undoubted thrill about any first hand account of an exploration into previously uncharted territory. This is the first of two volumes detailing Robert Schomburg’s explorations of British Guiana reproduced faithfully by the Hakluyt Society, which specialises in the publication of “scholarly editions of primary sources”.

The context is set by the editor and gives a useful biography of Schomburg and his troubled relationship with his sponsors. But much of the book is given over to Schomburg’s personal account. There are real gems to found but to find them you have to work through the book, following in the author’s footsteps. This is not an easy read; it is a serious work which makes demands on the reader. In a shrinking world of ubiquitous cell phones and satellite dishes accounts like this of worlds that have disappeared are a treasury which seems to grow in value. The Hakluyt Society provides us with a valuable service bringing such
accounts into print. - JP