The history of Java
Description: The History of Java is a remarkable work of synthesis, combining natural history - Raffles enlisted the help of the American botanist Thomas Horsfield, who sent specimens to Banks at Kew - history, anthropology, philology and topography. The superb plates with their images of costume, architecture, native implements and weapons, Buddhist iconography, and alphabets; the extensive tabulation of population and cultivation province by province; and the comparative vocabulary, reflect the breadth of intention of the work. It is unsurprising that it caused a stir and quickly sold through its print-run of 900 copies. "The marriage of a scientifically original text with beautiful illustrations by an accomplished aquatint engraver resulted in a book about Indonesia of outstanding quality; indeed a masterpiece" (Bastin & Brommer).
Collection: DOCUMENTARY HERITAGEDescription: The History of Java is a remarkable work of synthesis, combining natural history - Raffles enlisted the help of the American botanist Thomas Horsfield, who sent specimens to…