Covers the early explorations and discoveries on 3 continents: Africa (v. 1-5), Asia (v. 5-11), and America (v. 12-15). Materials on French, English, Dutch, and Portugese explorers and settlements are included throughout. Vols. on Africa cover primarily coastal countries of West, Southern, and Eastern Africa, plus the Congo, Madagascar, Arabia and the Persian Gulf areas. Vols. on Asia cover China, Korea, Tibet, Japan, Philippines, and countires bordering the Indian Ocean. V. 11 includes Australia and Antartica. Vols. 12-15 cover voyages and discoveries in America, including the East Indies, South, Central and North America.