Five hunfred years ago, a sailor’s life wasn’t much to sign about! Wet and cold, bad food, disease and cruel treatment cannot have tempted many men to sea, but the ruthless press gangs made sure that every ship had a full crew…

          This book tells you just what it was like to be a sailor from the earliest times, and looks at the development of shipping from the first rafts to today’s nuclear powered vessels. It is a fascinating introduction to a world that is still full of mysteries.