A Labyrinth of Kingdoms : 10 000 Miles Through Islamic Africa

In 1849 Heinrich Barth joined a small British expedition intounexplored regions of Islamic North and Central Africa. One by one hiscompanions died, but he carried on alone, eventually reaching the fabled cityof gold, Timbuktu. His five-and-a-half-year, 10,000-mile adventure ranks amongthe greatest journeys in the annals of exploration, and his discoveries areconsidered indispensable by modern scholars of Africa.

Yet because of shiftingpolitics, European preconceptions about Africa, and his own thorny personality,Barth has been almost forgotten. The general public has never heard of him, hisepic journey, or his still-pertinent observations about Africa and Islam; andhis monumental five-volume Travels and Discoveries in North and Central Africa is rare even in libraries. Though he made his journeyfor the British government, he has never had a biography in English. Barth andhis achievements have fallen through a crack in history.