A History of the World in Twelve Shipwrecks cover art

A History of the World in Twelve Shipwrecks

 Preview
Try for $0.00
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo + applicable taxes after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

A History of the World in Twelve Shipwrecks

Written by: David Gibbins
Narrated by: Kent Klineman
Try for $0.00

$14.95 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $26.31

Buy Now for $26.31

About this listen

The Viking warship of King Cnut the Great. Henry VIII's the Mary Rose. Captain John Franklin's doomed HMS Terror. The SS Gairsoppa, destroyed by a Nazi U-boat in the Atlantic during World War II.

Since we first set sail on the open sea, ships and their wrecks have been an inevitable part of human history. Archaeologists have made spectacular discoveries excavating these sunken ships, their protective underwater cocoon keeping evidence of past civilizations preserved. World renowned maritime archeologist David Gibbins ties together the stories of some of the most significant shipwrecks in time to form a single overarching narrative of world history.

A History of the World in Twelve Shipwrecks is not just the story of those ships, the people who sailed on them, and the cargo and treasure they carried, but also the story of the spread of people, religion, and ideas around the world; it is a story of colonialism, migration, and the indomitable human spirit that continues today.

Drawing on decades of experience, Gibbins reveals the riches beneath the waves and shows us how the treasures found there can be a porthole to the past that tell a new story about the world and its underwater secrets.

©2024 David Gibbins (P)2024 Tantor Archaeology Armed Forces Engineering Military World Submarine Middle Ages
All stars
Most relevant
In his book, A History of the World in Twelve Shipwrecks, David Gibbons, underwater archeologist, gives a fascinating look at history from the 2nd millennium BCE to WWII through the exploration of shipwrecks. He looks at what is known of each ship’s provenance, where it originated, where it had been before it sank, what it is known about its cargo including what has survived, and a bit of the history of the area where the ship was found and little bit about important historical events of the time.

I enjoyed this audiobook quite a lot but, as other reviewers have pointed out it reads in parts much like a text book and could be rather dry in some places. And, like any book, that covers large periods of history, some is bound to resonate more than others based on the reader’s specific interests. Still, for anyone interested in snapshot portraits of various periods of history, underwater archeology, or the evolution of commerce and/or shipbuilding through the ages, it is well worth a listen.

Fascinating Look at History & Underwater Archeology

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Excellent book chronicling not only important wrecks all over the world but also outlining human evolution through the artifacts recovered.
One downside is the narrator, I found his pacing to be staccato with abrupt pauses in the middle of sentences.

Obsessed with Maritime History

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.