Undying Curiosity: Carsten Niebuhr and The Royal Danish Expedition to Arabia (1761-1767) (Oriens Et Occidens)

In 1801, the nominations to the French Institut des sciences et des arts , the former French Academy, included Immanuel Kant, Johann Gottfried Herder, Thomas Jefferson, Friedrich Klopstock, Arthur Young, Joseph Priestly and Carsten Niebuhr. The first six are seminal figures of the 18th Century, but who was Carsten Niebuhr and why was he considered worthy of membership in Europe's most prestigious society? The answer is that it was Niebuhr who gave to European readers perhaps the most accurate, multifaceted and open-minded portrait of the Middle East published in the 18th Century, an account that is still highly respected for its scholarship today. This book is the first comprehensive, multidisciplinary study of his achievement and that of his colleagues as members of the Danish Expedition to Arabia. It is an examination of an encounter between the Northern European Enlightenment and the cultural, physical and ecological domains of the Middle East, and of the knowledge in many scholarly fields that this encounter produced. Drawing on extensive archival research, including field journals and correspondence, it paints in the context of the 18th Century, a vivid picture of the ideas behind, the field experience of, and the scientific results produced by what the London Times has called "One of the most extraordinary journeys of all time." Contents Acknowledgments Introduction Chapter One The Idea of the Expedition: “Benefit for the World of Scholarship” Michaelis’ Proposal: Arabia and the Search for Meaning in the Bible Johann David Michaelis and the Georgia Augusta University in Göttingen Why Denmark and Johann Hartwig Ernst von Bernstorff? Assembling the Team: The Philologist – Frederik Christian von Haven The Cartographer and his Teacher: Carsten Niebuhr and Tobias Mayer The Botanist – Peter Forsskål: An “Apostle” of Linnaeus Fragen an eine Gesellschaft gelehrter Männer: A European Exercise in Inquiry Bernstorff – the Manager Driving the Project: New Suggestions, Additions and Problems Niebuhr and his Instruments: A Detour on the Lunar Distance Method and the Problem of Determining Longitude Changing the Route and The Royal Instructions Chapter Two Exploration and Death Learning about Egypt, the Red Sea and Yemen The Outbound Voyage – Copenhagen to Alexandria Introduction to Egypt: Alexandria, the Nile and Arrival in Cairo Niebuhr – Ethnography, Map Making, the Great Pyramids and Hieroglyphs Forsskål – The Flora Aegyptiaco Haven – Manuscripts and Hebrew Codices Frustration and Failure in the Sinai Sailing the Red Sea – Discovering Marine Life and Creating a Chart Scientific Discovery in Yemen: Exploring the Tihāmah and the Coffee Mountains A Tragic Ending in Yemen: al Mukhā – Şan‘ā’ – Bombay Chapter Three The Solitary Explorer The Long Journey Home: India, the Persian Gulf and Lands of the Middle East Rejuvenation and Inspiration: A Brief Exposure to The Culture of Western India The Voyage from Bombay to al Başrah: Oman, Persepolis and Pirates of the Persian Gulf “Do not order me to travel too hastily. Now is the time when I can learn something.”: The Lands and Peoples of Iraq and the Levant From Caravans to Kings: The End of the Expedition Chapter Four Presenting The Expedition To The World and The Expedition’s Significance For The Eighteenth Century The Struggle to Publish the Findings of the Expedition From Geography to Botany: The Results of the Expedition Geography Cartography Navigational Astronomy Antiquities and Archeology The Natural Sciences Philology The Evaluation of Niebuhr’s Works in the 18th Century and Since Epilogue Niebuhr’s Return to a Rural Tradition: The Meldorf Years, 1778–1815 Conclusion List of Illustrations, Maps and Charts Bibliography of Published Sources Index In 1801, the nominations to the French Institut des sciences et des arts, the former French Academy, included Immanuel Kant, Johann Gottfried Herder, Thomas Jefferson, Friedrich Klopstock, Arthur Young, Joseph Priestly and Carsten Niebuhr. The first six are seminal figures of the 18th Century, but who was Carsten Niebuhr and why was he considered worthy of membership in Europe's most prestigious society? The answer is that it was Niebuhr who gave to European readers perhaps the most accurate, multifaceted and open-minded portrait of the Middle East published in the 18th Century, an account that is still highly respected for its scholarship today. This book is the first comprehensive, multidisciplinary study of his achievement and that of his colleagues as members of the Danish Expedition to Arabia. It is an examination of an encounter between the Northern European Enlightenment and the cultural, physical and ecological domains of the Middle East, and of the knowledge in many scholarly fields that this encounter produced.-- Publisher description