EUR  â¬231.60EUR  â¬193.00 excl. VAT
From Northeast Passage to Northern Sea Route
A History of the Waterway North of Eurasia
The notion of a waterway north of Eurasia, conceived in the first half of the sixteenth century, remained only a dream for centuries, due to ice, unmapped coastlines and a lack of geographical knowledge. This volume is the first comprehensive, scholarly account in English of the slow but steady exploration and commercial exploitation of the Siberian coastal waters, and it proves that this was a truly international endeavour. However, in the end, the Northern Sea Route as a through traverse route came to be used primarily by the Soviet Union, for which it became a crucial vehicle for the geopolitical and economic integration of its vast territories. As an international trade route the Northern Sea Route is only today about to win its way, essentially as a result of global warming. This being the case, should we rejoice or despair?
Jens Petter Nielsen, Professor emeritus of Northern Studies, UiT The Arctic University of Norway. He has published extensively on Russian and Soviet history and Russian-Norwegian relations, including Sblizhenie. Rossiya i Norvegiya v 1814-1917 godakh (âGetting closer. Russia and Norway 1914-1917â) (Ves mir, 2017). Edwin Okhuizen is a Dutch historian specialized in Arctic and Russian history, more specific in the history of geographical discovery and maritime exploration, the history of cartography, as well as commercial exploitation and international political relations. Formerly connected to Utrecht University, he is currently acting as an independent researcher preparing his Ph. D.
The book is of immediate interest and great relevance to specialists and students of Arctic and Russian history in general and the sea route north of the Eurasian continent in particular. It is a must have for scientific libraries worldwide especially those of universities and other academic institutes such as maritime and polar museums.
