French explorer Réné Caillié (1799-1838) was the first European to document a successful expedition to Timbuktu Africa s elusive city of gold . Europeans were not welcome there and until Caillié s expedition no explorer had returned alive. Encouraged by the 10 000 francs offered by the Société de Géographie to the first non-Muslim to bring back information on the city he set out in 1824 from Senegal and eventually reached Timbuktu in 1828 remaining there for a fortnight before returning to France. His travels are recounted here in this two-volume work first published in English in 1830. Volume 1 covers his outward journey with detailed accounts of the people customs and commerce he encountered on the way. Volume 2 covers his time in Timbuktu its tribal conflict and slavery and the return journey across the Sahara Desert while suffering from fever and fatigue. Vividly written Caillié s work remains a landmark in the history of African exploration and adventure.