Zarafa: A Giraffe's True Story, from Deep in Africa to the Heart of Paris
by Michael Allin
- Used
- Paperback
- Condition
- Very Good+
- ISBN 10
- 0385334117
- ISBN 13
- 9780385334112
- Seller
-
Arlington, Virginia, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
New York: Dell / Delta, August 1999. Trade Paperback. Very Good+. Light reading wear to covers. Text unmarked. Spine straight, tight and uncreased. Not from a library. No remainder mark. Not clipped. 215 pages.
In October 1826, a ship arrived at Marseille carrying the first giraffe ever seen in France. A royal offering from Muhammad Ali, Ottoman Viceroy of Egypt, to King Charles X, she had already traveled 2,000 miles down the Nile to Alexandria, from where she had sailed across the Mediterranean standing in the hold, her long neck and head protruding through a hole cut in the deck. In the spring of 1827, after wintering in Marseille, she was carefully walked 550 miles to Paris to the delight of thousands of onlookers. The viceroy's tribute was politically motivated: He commanded the Turkish forces then fighting the Greeks in their war of independence, and hoped his gift would persuade the French not to intervene against him. But the viceroy and his intentions were quickly forgotten as France fell in love with its "beautiful stranger." Zarafa chronicles the full story of this remarkable animal, revealing a kaleidoscope of history, science, and culture that opens an exotic window on the early nineteenth century. From the Enlightenment's blossoming fascination with science to Napoleon's ill-fated invasion of Egypt in 1798-from the eminent French naturalist Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire to Bernardino Drovetti, French consul general in Egypt and tomb robber extraordinaire-the era was full of memorable events and characters. Michael Allin deftly weaves them into the story with an appreciation for detail and an uncommon affection. The giraffe's strange and wonderful journey linked Africa and Europe in mutual discovery. Although her arrival did not keep the French out of Ali's war, she became an instant celebrity in Paris and over the next eighteen years she fascinated all of Europe.
In October 1826, a ship arrived at Marseille carrying the first giraffe ever seen in France. A royal offering from Muhammad Ali, Ottoman Viceroy of Egypt, to King Charles X, she had already traveled 2,000 miles down the Nile to Alexandria, from where she had sailed across the Mediterranean standing in the hold, her long neck and head protruding through a hole cut in the deck. In the spring of 1827, after wintering in Marseille, she was carefully walked 550 miles to Paris to the delight of thousands of onlookers. The viceroy's tribute was politically motivated: He commanded the Turkish forces then fighting the Greeks in their war of independence, and hoped his gift would persuade the French not to intervene against him. But the viceroy and his intentions were quickly forgotten as France fell in love with its "beautiful stranger." Zarafa chronicles the full story of this remarkable animal, revealing a kaleidoscope of history, science, and culture that opens an exotic window on the early nineteenth century. From the Enlightenment's blossoming fascination with science to Napoleon's ill-fated invasion of Egypt in 1798-from the eminent French naturalist Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire to Bernardino Drovetti, French consul general in Egypt and tomb robber extraordinaire-the era was full of memorable events and characters. Michael Allin deftly weaves them into the story with an appreciation for detail and an uncommon affection. The giraffe's strange and wonderful journey linked Africa and Europe in mutual discovery. Although her arrival did not keep the French out of Ali's war, she became an instant celebrity in Paris and over the next eighteen years she fascinated all of Europe.
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Details
- Bookseller
- Books of the World (US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- RWARE0000003388
- Title
- Zarafa: A Giraffe's True Story, from Deep in Africa to the Heart of Paris
- Author
- Michael Allin
- Format/Binding
- Trade Paperback
- Book Condition
- Used - Very Good+
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Binding
- Paperback
- ISBN 10
- 0385334117
- ISBN 13
- 9780385334112
- Publisher
- Dell / Delta
- Place of Publication
- New York
- Date Published
- August 1999
- Keywords
- biography, giraffe, history, animals, wildlife, zoo, zoos, zoo anilmals, Europe, France, Africa, Ottoman Empire, Egypt
- Bookseller catalogs
- Africa; History; Biographies; Europe; France; Animals;
- Size
- 8vo
Terms of Sale
Books of the World
30 day return guarantee, with full refund if an item arrives mis-described or damaged.
About the Seller
Books of the World
Biblio member since 2017
Arlington, Virginia
About Books of the World
Finding new homes for the library I collected over five decades of travel around the world.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Good+
- A term used to denote a condition a slight grade better than Good.
- Tight
- Used to mean that the binding of a book has not been overly loosened by frequent use.
- Trade Paperback
- Used to indicate any paperback book that is larger than a mass-market paperback and is often more similar in size to a hardcover...
- Remainder Mark
- Usually an ink marking of some sort which indicates that the book was designated a remainder. In most cases, it can be found on...
- Spine
- The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....