“The Garden of Aden”

Siegfried Langer (1857–1882)

In 1881 the young Orientalist Siegfried Langer leaves Vienna to travel to Yemen. After remaining for two weeks in the highlands of Sana’a, Langer intends to press on into the interior. The Ottoman authorities expel him from the country. His renewed attempt to reach Yemen from the British harbour city of Aden ends tragically. Langer had sent the ancient South Arabic inscriptions which he had collected at the beginning of his journey, along with his notebooks, from Aden to Vienna.