The Nile Tributaries of Abyssinia, and the Sword Hunters of the Hamran Arabs

In the 1860s, one man set out to solve one of geography's greatest mysteries: where does the Nile begin? Sir Samuel Baker's account of his grueling expedition through Abyssinia reads like something between a scientific journal and an adventure novel. He and a small team, including his wife, trekked from Cairo into some of the most unforgiving terrain on Earth, following the great river's tributaries through the Nubian desert and into the Ethiopian highlands. Baker wasn't just mapping. He was hunting with the legendary Hamran Arabs, whose sword-wielding hunters became his guides and companions. He tracked lions, shot rhinoceroses, and endured temperatures that killed camels. He encountered warlords, missionaries, and the proud peoples of Abyssinia - Muslim and Christian communities living in the shadow of ancient mountains. This is exploration as it once was: brutal, romantic, and tinged with the certainties of the Victorian age. Anyone who dreams of the age of discovery will find this irresistible.