The truth is often improbable! On July 2, 1816, the frigate Medusa ran aground off the coast of Africa. As there were not enough lifeboats on board, a raft was constructed, accommodating no fewer than 150 people. Without scruples, the lifeboats departed, leaving the largely unmanageable vessel behind. When the raft was accidentally discovered twelve days later, only fifteen people were still alive. This novel account by two survivors vividly describes the struggle at sea against both hunger and fellow sufferers. The text became famous not only for its astonishingly sober depiction of mutiny and cannibalism but also for its political significance, as many contemporaries viewed this shipwreck as a reflection of the state of the nation.