Author: V. D. RoeperPublisher:
ISBN:
Category : Cheju Island (Korea)
Languages : en
Pages : 200
Book Description
"In 1653 the VOC ship Sperwer smashed to pieces on the rocks off a remote Koean island. There were thirty-six survivors. The king of Korea decided that the foreigners should spend the rest of their lives in his hermit kingdom. The Dutchmen were provided with food and housing and a certain amount of freedom of movement, but had no choice but to accept their fate. After 13 years eight of them managed to reach Japan in a small, barely seaworthy boat. Hendrick Hamel's report on their adventures soon became available to a wider public. For two centuries it was the most important source of information about the mysterious kingdom of Korea. It continues to fascinate as a report of a meeting between two completely different cultures. In 2003, 350 years after the event, the stranding of the Dutchmen is widely commemorated in Korea"--P. [4] of cover.
