TELEVISION

History's Greatest Voyages of Exploration

Series: Great Courses
4.6
(25)
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Episodes
24
Rating
TVPG
Year
2015
Language
English
Publisher
The Great Courses

About

Delve into the awe-inspiring, vast, and surprisingly interconnected tale of world exploration. These 24 lectures shine a spotlight on some of the greatest and most influential explorers the world has ever known. Witness the treacherous, at times fatal, expeditions into the unknown that these adventurers embarked upon, whether to the frozen poles or the final frontier of space.

Related Subjects

Episodes

1 to 3 of 24

1. The Earliest Explorers

30m

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Begin your study journey with the Vivaldi brothers' ill-fated journey to India. What drove the brothers - or drives any explorer - to take a risk and venture into the unknown? Consider that question as you look at theories on how the Pacific islands became populated starting with an epic movement 7,000 years ago.

2. The Scientific Voyage of Pytheas the Greek

30m

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Meet the originator of scientific exploration, who trekked to the edge of the world so that he could see for himself what was there. Put Pytheas the Greek in the context of his time and place, sketching the Mediterranean as a cradle of civilization and examining how word of his voyage influenced later exploration.

3. St. Brendan - The Travels of an Irish Monk

30m

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Consider religious motivations for exploration. Men like the Irish monk St. Brendan - who sailed the Atlantic in a tiny leather boat - sought God and fled the world's corruptions, some searching for paradise and some merely for seclusion. Examine how legendary re-workings of such real adventures left a surprising legacy that would affect later exploration.

4. Xuanzang's Journey to the West

30m

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Alarmed at inconsistencies in the Buddhist texts available to him, Xuanzang embarked on an illegal holy pilgrimage to acquire authoritative teachings. See how, in the process of the monk's travels, he brought Buddhist traditions to the Confucian Chinese, achieved celebrity status, and became the central character in the greatest classical Chinese novel.

5. Leif Eriksson the Lucky

30m

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While the story of Leif Eriksson and the Vikings is relatively well known, Professor Liulevicius takes you deeper into the question of why the Vikings, or Norsemen, explored, as evidenced by their broader culture of adventure and values that pressed them onwards in often violent ways.

6. Marco Polo and Sir John Mandeville

30m

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Although traders had traveled the Silk Road since the Roman Empire, there was little awareness of what existed at the other end - until Marco Polo's accounts of China opened Europeans' eyes to a mysterious, advanced civilization. Start with background on the medieval world, then look closely at Polo's travels and legacy.

Extended Details

  • Closed CaptionsEnglish

Artists

Vejas Gabriel Liuleviciuswriter
Vejas Gabriel Liuleviciusactor