Today, with the help of Google maps and advanced satellite technology it is easy to explore any part of the earth, but not so long ago, many remote areas were shrouded in mystery – such as the Nile River. For over 3,000 years explorers had been attempting to discover the source of the Nile.
One such explorer was a young woman named Alexandrine Tinne. She was born on October 17, 1835 to Philip Frederik Tinne and Henriette van Capellen in The Hague, Netherlands. By the time she was 10, Tinne’s father died leaving her enormously wealthy.
At the age of 26, Tinne and her mother embarked on an ambitious journey up the Nile in search of its source. Unfortunately her mother Henriette died of malaria during the journey. Tinne returned to Cairo with her mother’s body but refused to leave Egypt to go home. A few years later Tinne made a second attempt to travel up the Nile in a caravan. Tragically, she was murdered, along with two Dutch sailors in her party, while attempting to cross the Sahara desert.
Although her expedition ended badly, she will always be remembered as one of the first women to dare to defy the conventions of her time and follow her heart in search of adventure.
Picture Credit : Google
