Hidden treasures, sunken worlds

Who hasn't dreamed of roaming the world like the great explorers and tracking down forgotten places or lost treasures in the footsteps of ancient civilizations? Or at least to have been there when Schliemann discovered the ruins of Troy or Thor Heyerdahl crossed the Pacific on the Kon-Tiki? The latter succeeds, at least on paper, with this book, which creates a captivating and entertaining link to 21 such expeditions and discoveries. Accidental discoveries stand alongside targeted searches.

How a vintner comes across the Laocoon group, how the navigator Jacob Roggeveen discovers (strictly speaking: rediscovers), how the entomologist Henri Mouhot is completely unprepared in the Cambodian jungle in front of the ruins of Angkor Wat, and how Hiram Bingham in search of the mysterious Inca city of Vilcabamba comes instead to the overgrown Machu Picchu, are examples of the accidental side. The decipherment of hieroglyphics by Jean-François Champollion, the already above-mentioned discovery of ancient Troy by Heinrich Schliemann, the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun by Howard Carter and the systematization and modernization of excavations in Pompeii stand for the side where targeted preparation leads to a planned goal.

The knowledgeable, excitingly written texts are from the pen of Silke Vry, who studied classical archaeology, art history and folklore and has participated in quite a few excavations in Syria, Jordan and Germany. She not only looks at the discoveries themselves, but also takes a look at the often foreign cultures and what separates us from them or connects us to them today. Martin Haake, who has been working as a freelance illustrator for international publishers for more than 15 years, is responsible for the coherent and beautiful illustrations. His illustrations have won several awards.