Asia Illustrated from Shapero Rare Books

Shapero Rare Books has issued a catalogue of Asia Illustrated. This catalogue is filled with outstanding artists' renditions of scenes from Asia. There are a few books using photographs, but the great majority contain original art. With a few exceptions, they are from the 19^th century. This is the time when Europeans began to regularly visit Asia, but photography had either not yet been developed or was still in its infancy. Artwork was the only way to accurately relay how these far-off places appeared to the people back home. Most are of scenes, either natural or architectural, or portraits of the people who lived in Asia and their dress. Most contain textual descriptions too, some involved, others brief. We can also say that the artists who created the works in this catalogue were very good at their craft. Some pictures are very good, other stunning. Here are a few of these books.

We begin with a look at China when that land was still mostly a mystery to westerners, circa 1843. Shapero notes that artist Thomas Allom “presented the Western world with the most complete portrait of China and Chinese culture up to the middle of the nineteenth century.” The engravings show scenic views and architecture, mostly from southeastern China – Hong Kong, Shanghai, Nanking, Canton and Macao, although there are several images from other locations, including Peking. Some were created from Allom's own observations while others were taken from other artists' works. The text was written by George Wright, a Protestant missionary who spent much time in China. The title is China: in a series of views displaying the scenery, architecture, and social habits of that ancient empire. It proved to be a great success, going through several editions. It consists of four volumes, bound in two, with 124 finely engraved steel plates. Item 2. Priced at £2,000 (British pounds, or approximately $2,536 is U.S. currency).

These are some of the first views of a land that was even less well-known in the middle of the nineteenth century. It was mysterious because it was off-limits, closed to the West. That would be Japan, and it would have stayed that way if Americans, under the command of Commodore Matthew Perry, hadn't forced the Japanese to open their country through the use of military force. Perry visited Japan twice, in 1853 and 1854. There were images in Perry's account, but six far superior ones were produced in an elephant folio in 1855. This book, entitled Graphic Scenes in the Japan Expedition, was produced in 1856. This volume is in a smaller format but contains ten plates, different from the six in the 1855 edition. The artist was William Heine, the official artist on Perry's expedition. There are nine views and one portrait of Perry taken from a daguerreotype. Item 23. £10,000 (US $12,666).

John Crawfurd was selected to travel on a diplomatic mission to Burma by England in 1827. It was a long trip by today's standards but transportation opportunities were limited then. Along the way, he recorded what he saw. He went by paddle steamer up the Irrawaddy River, during which time the steamer broke down. Crawfurd used that time to collect fossils and other natural history specimens, including the remains of a mastodon, which he sent back to London. A separate description of these finds is provided in an appendix. The book is Journal of an Embassy from the Governor-General of India to the Courts of Siam and Cochin China, Exhibiting a View of the Actual State of Those Kingdoms, published in 1827. Cochin China is today known as Vietnam. Item 10. £5,000 (US $6,333).

This is a particularly spectacular view book because the scenery itself is spectacular. There aren't many things more magnificent than the Himalaya mountains. This is Views of the Himala Mountains by James Baillie Fraser, published in 1820. Fraser travelled to Calcutta to be a merchant. While in India, he studied painting. His brother was a political agent to some of the local chiefs in the area leading James to travel with him in the Himalayas. James reputedly became the first European to see the source of the Ganges. The russia binding came from a cargo of reindeer skins on the Catharina which sank in Plymouth Sound in 1786. It was buried in the mud for 200 years before being found and used in this recent binding. Item 18. £37,500 (US $47,535).

Emily Eden came from an aristocratic family. Her brother, George, aka 1^st Earl of Auckland, was Governor-General of India. Emily and her sister, Fanny, took advantage of the connection to spend a couple of years travelling around India with their brother. Emily was also an amateur artist, but a very gifted one. She sketched what she saw. That included royalty as well as regular people, hence her book's title Portraits of the Princes & People of India. Of particular note are her images of the bejewelled horses, elephants, dogs, hawks, and hunting leopards sent to accompany Lord Auckland by the King of Oudh. Two and one-half years after her arrival, she returned to England, completed her drawings, and published this collection of her work. Published in 1844 by Hon. Emily Eden. Item 15. £40,000 (US $50,729).

Shapero Rare Books may be reached at +44 (0)20 7493 0876 or rarebooks@shapero.com. Their website is www.shapero.com.