

Allan Quatermain is a Victorian Indiana Jones - he triumphs over deserts, snowy mountains, tribal warfare and witches, and unearths the mythical treasure of King Solomon's mines. This faithful but unpretending record of a remarkable adventure is hereby respectfully dedicated by the narrator to all the big boys and little boys who read it. I offer apologies for my blunt way of writing. I can but say in excuse of it that I am more accustomed to handling a rifle than a pen. This is the strange history of our journey into the heart of Kukuanaland; a trek into the interior of the dark continent to find a lost friend and discover the diamond mines of King Solomon.In the course of a long life of close shaves, I never had such shaves as those which I have recently experienced. - Allan Quatermain, of Durban, Natal, Gentleman ‘One of the great page-turners in English literature’ Guardian
Allan Quatermain is a Victorian Indiana Jones - he triumphs over deserts, snowy mountains, tribal warfare and witches, and unearths the mythical treasure of King Solomon's mines. This faithful but unpretending record of a remarkable adventure is hereby respectfully dedicated by the narrator to all the big boys and little boys who read it. I offer apologies for my blunt way of writing. I can but say in excuse of it that I am more accustomed to handling a rifle than a pen. This is the strange history of our journey into the heart of Kukuanaland; a trek into the interior of the dark continent to find a lost friend and discover the diamond mines of King Solomon.In the course of a long life of close shaves, I never had such shaves as those which I have recently experienced. - Allan Quatermain, of Durban, Natal, Gentleman ‘One of the great page-turners in English literature’ Guardian
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Find King Solomon's Mines H. Rider Haggard in PDF, EPUB, ebook, audiobook, print, or library editions.
Find King Solomon's Mines H. Rider Haggard in PDF, EPUB, ebook, audiobook, print, or library editions.
2 books in catalog
Victorian adventure fiction gained a foundational narrative model with stories set in unexplored regions that established the lost world literary genre. H. Rider Haggard became a central figure in popular late-nineteenth-century literature through his tales of African exploration, ancient civilizations, and dramatic expeditions, including the famous 1885 novel King Solomon's Mines.
Born in Norfolk, England, in 1856, Henry Rider Haggard was sent to South Africa in 1875 to serve as secretary to Sir Henry Bulwer, the lieutenant-governor of Natal. During his six years in southern Africa, Haggard held official colonial posts, including Master of the High Court of the Transvaal and an adjutant of the Pretoria Horse. His direct observations of African landscapes, cultures, and regional politics deeply informed his subsequent writing. Upon returning to England, he turned these experiences into popular fiction alongside non-fiction works and imperial agricultural studies, eventually receiving a knighthood for his public service and land reform efforts prior to his death in 1925.
Haggard's narrative style combined Victorian romance with detailed descriptions of African topography, history, and folklore. His adventure stories frequently explore themes of ancient lost civilizations, supernatural longevity, colonial anxiety, and heroic voyages through uncharted wilderness. By pairing realistic observational details from his time in southern Africa with imaginative archaeological mysteries, Haggard established a durable template for lost-world adventure narrative that influenced generations of adventure literature.
2 books in catalog
Victorian adventure fiction gained a foundational narrative model with stories set in unexplored regions that established the lost world literary genre. H. Rider Haggard became a central figure in popular late-nineteenth-century literature through his tales of African exploration, ancient civilizations, and dramatic expeditions, including the famous 1885 novel King Solomon's Mines.
Born in Norfolk, England, in 1856, Henry Rider Haggard was sent to South Africa in 1875 to serve as secretary to Sir Henry Bulwer, the lieutenant-governor of Natal. During his six years in southern Africa, Haggard held official colonial posts, including Master of the High Court of the Transvaal and an adjutant of the Pretoria Horse. His direct observations of African landscapes, cultures, and regional politics deeply informed his subsequent writing. Upon returning to England, he turned these experiences into popular fiction alongside non-fiction works and imperial agricultural studies, eventually receiving a knighthood for his public service and land reform efforts prior to his death in 1925.
Haggard's narrative style combined Victorian romance with detailed descriptions of African topography, history, and folklore. His adventure stories frequently explore themes of ancient lost civilizations, supernatural longevity, colonial anxiety, and heroic voyages through uncharted wilderness. By pairing realistic observational details from his time in southern Africa with imaginative archaeological mysteries, Haggard established a durable template for lost-world adventure narrative that influenced generations of adventure literature.
Allan Quatermain
Allan Quatermain