Books in the Cambridge Library Collection - Travel and Exploration in Asia series

First published in 1904, this work describes the expeditions of the horticulturalist Reginald J. Farrer (1880-1920) in Asia. His accounts of new flora, and especially of rock gardens, influenced English gardening style, and the legacy of his writings and plant introductions remains significant today.

Filled with anecdotes and observations (occasionally tinged with condescension), this 1889 book is an entertaining account not only of the journey but of the lands, people and customs that de Windt and his companion encountered while travelling overland from Beijing to the coast of France.

Isabella Bird (Mrs Bishop, 1831-1904) wrote best-selling travel books on America, Hawaii, the Far East and Persia. This two-volume work, published in 1898, arose from Bird's travels in Korea and China between 1894 and 1897. She provides vivid descriptions of the Korean people, their way of life and customs.

French explorer, author and legislator Gabriel Bonvalot (1853-1933) undertook several expeditions to Central Asia. This two-volume work, published in 1891, tells of Bonvalot's journey across Europe and Asia to French Indochina in 1889-90. In Volume 1 the expedition reaches Tibet via Russia and Siberia, despite arduous travelling conditions.

James Silk Buckingham (1786-1855) was a writer who travelled extensively and published accounts of his adventures in places such as India, Persia, Egypt, and Palestine. He served as an M.P., and was a supporter of political and social reforms. His two volumes of autobiography appeared in 1855.

In 1755, naturalist Stepan Krasheninnikov published this account of an expedition to Kamchatka in 1733-43 to extend scientific and geographical knowledge of eastern lands. Published in English translation in 1764, the work is a fascinating and detailed account of a huge area virtually unknown to the western world.

The Carmelite missionary Paolino da San Bartolomeo (1748-1806) arrived in India in 1776. A noted orientalist, he was among the first to note the relationship between Sanskrit and European languages. Published in 1800, this English translation of a 1796 work presents his observations on Indian geography, language and culture.

In 1783, at the opportunity presented by a new Panchen Lama, Samuel Turner (1759-1802) led a deputation from Bengal to Tibet and Bhutan in the hope of promoting British-Indian trade. Originally published in 1800, his insightful first-hand description of these countries remained the only such English-language work for decades.

Later famous as Second Secretary to the Admiralty and a supporter of Arctic exploration, Sir John Barrow (1764-1848) joined Lord Macartney's British embassy to China in 1792-4. During this time he visited Cochinchina (now Vietnam). This 1806 illustrated travelogue covers the embassy's voyage via Brazil and Java.

Sailor Edward Brown had taken command of a Chinese-crewed ship when it was captured by pirates. In this engaging account, published in 1861, Brown recounts his months in captivity and the places he was taken, giving a vivid picture of Cochin-China (Vietnam) during the Second Opium War (1856-60).

Displaying a profound understanding of the local flora, fauna, history and people, William Marsden (1754-1836) provides an important account of a little-known part of Indonesia. Illustrated with botanical drawings, maps and local scenes, the third edition of 1811 is reissued here.

The botanist Robert Fortune (1813-80) was sent to China by the East India Company in 1848 in order to obtain tea samples for the plantations in the Himalayas. This account of his adventures there, first published in 1852, provides a glimpse into his enchanting and often bizarre experiences.

Norwegian explorer Carl Lumholtz (1851-1922) wrote the influential ethnographic studies Among Cannibals and Unknown Mexico after his journeys through Australia and Mexico. This two-volume account of his last expedition was originally published in 1920. Volume 1 includes an overview of Borneo and details of the ceremonies of native tribes.

This two-volume 1844 work is a memoir of the tour of duty of Captain Arthur Cunynghame (1812-84) in China as aide-de-camp to Major-General Lord Saltoun, Commander of the East India Company's troops there. His observations of 'a country that is so strange and new to all Europe' are fascinating.

French explorer, author and legislator Gabriel Bonvalot (1853-1933) received funding from the French government to lead expeditions to Central Asia in the 1880s. This 1889 work is an account of the second Asian expedition. In Volume 2 the expedition reaches Chatral and is again imprisoned but eventually reaches India.

A pioneering piece of travel writing, Anne Katharine Elwood's Narrative of a Journey Overland (1830) describes sights from cathedrals to pyramids, and deserts to termites. Volume 1 covers her journey to Bombay via France, Italy and Egypt, and constitutes a unique account of interest to travellers and historians alike.

John Davy (1790-1868), an army surgeon, published this work in 1821, based on interviews and observations during a four-year visit. Containing an overview of the island's natural history and the culture of its people, along with an account of Davy's travels, the work offers insights into early nineteenth-century Ceylon.

John Crawfurd (1783-1868), an East India Company administrator, published this work in 1856. Focusing primarily on Java, Malay, Siam and the Philippines, this account of the culture, politics, language and geography of the region, presented concisely and alphabetically, remains an informative source on the Victorian understanding of South-East Asia.

First published in 1876, this volume contains first-hand accounts of the first voyages to Tibet by British diplomat George Bogle (1747-1781) and scholar Thomas Manning (1772-1840). Edited by prolific writer Sir Clements Markham (1830-1916) this volume includes a detailed introduction with biographies of the two adventurers.

The Book of Ser Marco Polo is an edition of the famous travelogue describing the travels of Marco Polo through Asia, Persia, China and Indonesia between 1271 and 1291. It was edited by the prominent nineteenth-century geographer Henry Yule and was considered an authoritative source on Polo's travels.

William Gill was an explorer and officer in the Royal Engineers, who used his large inheritance to finance explorations of remote countries. This two volume work, published in 1880, describes his expedition from Sichuan along the eastern Tibetan border to Burma. Volume 1 focuses on the area around Chengdu, China.

Emma Roberts' three-volume work, published in 1835, engagingly covers a wide variety of aspects of India's social, political, religious, and domestic culture, as well its natural history. Written at the height of the East India Company's power, this is an important resource for researchers of colonialism or women's writing.

A detailed and delightfully descriptive work from the author Alicia Little, who became famous for leading the movement against the Chinese custom of foot-binding in the late nineteenth century. The book is fully illustrated throughout.

First published in 1892, this captivating book charts the journey of two Baptist missionaries through the Shantung and Shansi provinces of China during the winter of 1890. With a preface by Glover and a map of the area traversed, this book provides a detailed account of missionary life in China.

Emily Eden's childhood prepared her well for her role as companion to her brother, the Governor-General of India, but the observant and sharp-tongued Eden (1797-1869) never censored her letters for the sake of diplomacy. This two-volume collection, edited by her niece Eleanor Eden, was published posthumously in 1872.

Alexander Williamson (1829-90) was a Scottish missionary and agent of the National Bible Society of Scotland. This learned and discursive two-volume travelogue, first published in 1870, records his observations during extensive travels that took him through northern China, Mongolia and Manchuria while propagating the Bible in Chinese script.

In 1676, Jean Baptiste Tavernier (1605-89), French merchant, traveller and pioneer of trade with India, published an account of his journey through India. This two-volume translation, published in 1889 by Irish geologist Valentine Ball (1843-94), includes a biographical sketch of the author, notes and appendices.

Published in 1895, these two volumes contain Henry Morton Stanley's early journalistic writings during his travels in America and Asia from 1867 to 1869. Stanley is best-known for his subsequent African explorations, but these early works reveal much about his character and future ambitions.

Narrating in detail grand events and quotidian anecdotes, and observing religious practices and customs, Francois Bernier provides a Eurocentric perspective on northern India, its people, and its places. Brock's interventions as translator affirm that perspective while drawing attention to Britain's presence in India and adding explanatory details to Bernier's account.

Eden's candid but sensitive account of three years in India represents the experiences of thousands of women who endured dusty bonnets and darned crinolines to accompany fathers and husbands to the furthest outposts of the British Empire. Volume 1 takes readers from London to Calcutta via sea voyages and monsoons.