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Son of Heaven -
Princess Der Ling
1935 - D. Appleton-Century Company, New York - First Edition
The story of the colourful, dramatic, and tragic life of Kwang Hsu, taken from his parents at the age of four to be placed as Emperor on a puppet throne, handsome, attractive, diligent as he grew into a realisation of his potential power, loving no one save the concubine Pearl, dying at the age of 37 at the hand of his aunt, the relentless Empress Dowager Cixi, a day before her own death. Princess Der Ling herself had served as first lady-in-waiting to Empress Dowager Cixi.
‘Princess’ Der Ling - daughter of a Manchu aristocrat, granddaughter of a Boston merchant, educated like a boy in the Confucian classics, a baptised Catholic blessed by the hand of Pope Leo XIII, a woman who donned chic Western fashions in China and her ceremonial court robes in the United States, and wife of an American soldier of fortune... Der Ling was a fascinating human battleground of warring identities, a victim of the hallucinogenic effects of too much publicity, much of it prompted by Der Ling herself, and a figure whose life provides a glimpse into one woman’s experience of living not just between two cultures—that of China and the West—but among many worlds: social, religious, moral, political. - Grant Hayter-Menzies author of Imperial Masquerade, the Legend of Princess Der Ling.
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Price HK$ 2,000
1935 - D. Appleton-Century Company, New York - First Edition
The story of the colourful, dramatic, and tragic life of Kwang Hsu, taken from his parents at the age of four to be placed as Emperor on a puppet throne, handsome, attractive, diligent as he grew into a realisation of his potential power, loving no one save the concubine Pearl, dying at the age of 37 at the hand of his aunt, the relentless Empress Dowager Cixi, a day before her own death. Princess Der Ling herself had served as first lady-in-waiting to Empress Dowager Cixi.‘Princess’ Der Ling - daughter of a Manchu aristocrat, granddaughter of a Boston merchant, educated like a boy in the Confucian classics, a baptised Catholic blessed by the hand of Pope Leo XIII, a woman who donned chic Western fashions in China and her ceremonial court robes in the United States, and wife of an American soldier of fortune... Der Ling was a fascinating human battleground of warring identities, a victim of the hallucinogenic effects of too much publicity, much of it prompted by Der Ling herself, and a figure whose life provides a glimpse into one woman’s experience of living not just between two cultures—that of China and the West—but among many worlds: social, religious, moral, political. - Grant Hayter-Menzies author of Imperial Masquerade, the Legend of Princess Der Ling.
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Price HK$ 2,000
A Description of the Empire of China -
Jean-Baptiste Du Halde
1738-41 - Printed by T. Gardner...for Edward Cave, London - First folio edition in English.
Two large folio volumes in contemporary bindings, housed in separate cloth slipcases.
One of the most celebrated of all 18th century works on China, illustrated with 64 engraved plates, including D’Anville’s exceptional maps (42 large maps most engraved by Bowen), 9 city and temple plans, and 13 full-page plates depicting dress, customs and ceremonies. With exquisitely engraved headpieces and initial letters.
The completest [sic] and most valuable history of the Chinese Empire which had appeared up to the time of its publication.’ [Cox, Literature of Travel]
The maps by Jean Baptiste Bourguignon d’Anville are based on the extensive Jesuit surveys carried out for the Emperor Kangxi between 1708 and 1718. These maps ‘remained the principal cartographical authority on China during the rest of the 18th century’. [Tooley]
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Price HK$ 245,000
1738-41 - Printed by T. Gardner...for Edward Cave, London - First folio edition in English.
Two large folio volumes in contemporary bindings, housed in separate cloth slipcases. One of the most celebrated of all 18th century works on China, illustrated with 64 engraved plates, including D’Anville’s exceptional maps (42 large maps most engraved by Bowen), 9 city and temple plans, and 13 full-page plates depicting dress, customs and ceremonies. With exquisitely engraved headpieces and initial letters.
The completest [sic] and most valuable history of the Chinese Empire which had appeared up to the time of its publication.’ [Cox, Literature of Travel]
The maps by Jean Baptiste Bourguignon d’Anville are based on the extensive Jesuit surveys carried out for the Emperor Kangxi between 1708 and 1718. These maps ‘remained the principal cartographical authority on China during the rest of the 18th century’. [Tooley]
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Price HK$ 245,000
SOLD - Among Primitive Peoples in Borneo -
Ivor H. N. Evans
1922 - J. B. Lippincott Company, Philadelphia - First American Edition
Widely considered one of the best early works on the tribes of Northern Borneo [Sabah]. Illustrated with 21 black and white photographs, and a folding map to the rear.
After studying at Clare College, Cambridge, where his ethnographic interests were inspired by Alfred Haddon, Evans joined the colonial services in Malaysia, and in 1910 at the age of 24 became a cadet district officer for the North Borneo Chartered Company, based in the Tempasuk and Tuaran Districts. These memoirs are a fascinating mixture of history and personal recollections, with chapters on the culture, customs, and of course the joys of local travel, which can only be imagined.
Ivor Hugh Norman Evans (1886-1957) was a British anthropologist, ethnographer and archaeologist who spent most of his working life in peninsular British Malaya and in North Borneo [Sabah]
Educated at Charterhouse School and Clare College, Cambridge, during which time he studied under Alfred Haddon. In 1910-11 he briefly served as a colonial administrator, as cadet district officer for the North Borneo Chartered Company, which administrated the independent state and British protectorate of North Borneo. He was based in the Tempasuk and Tuaran Districts.
Evans spent much of his career on peninsular Malaya from 1912 until 1932 at the Perak State Museum in Taiping, the first museum in Malaysia. He was appointed Curator there in 1917 and also worked as an ethnographer and archaeologist. After a short term of early retirement [1932-8] Evans returned to Borneo, where he was to spend the rest of his life. He carried out ethnographic research on the religious beliefs, practices and folklore of the Dusuns of the Kota Belud area. During the Japanese occupation of Borneo in World War II, Evans was held as a civilian internee at Batu Lintang camp at Kuching in Sarawak. A collection of Evans’ material, including diaries and photographs taken on peninsular Malaya and in Borneo are held at the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, University of Cambridge (reference GB-1638-MS. Collections, BA5/9/1-7). Evans left a bequest to Cambridge University which led to the creation of the Evans Research Fellowship and the Evans Fund, to promote anthropological and archaeological research in South East Asia.
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Price HK$ 0
1922 - J. B. Lippincott Company, Philadelphia - First American Edition
Widely considered one of the best early works on the tribes of Northern Borneo [Sabah]. Illustrated with 21 black and white photographs, and a folding map to the rear.After studying at Clare College, Cambridge, where his ethnographic interests were inspired by Alfred Haddon, Evans joined the colonial services in Malaysia, and in 1910 at the age of 24 became a cadet district officer for the North Borneo Chartered Company, based in the Tempasuk and Tuaran Districts. These memoirs are a fascinating mixture of history and personal recollections, with chapters on the culture, customs, and of course the joys of local travel, which can only be imagined.
Ivor Hugh Norman Evans (1886-1957) was a British anthropologist, ethnographer and archaeologist who spent most of his working life in peninsular British Malaya and in North Borneo [Sabah]
Educated at Charterhouse School and Clare College, Cambridge, during which time he studied under Alfred Haddon. In 1910-11 he briefly served as a colonial administrator, as cadet district officer for the North Borneo Chartered Company, which administrated the independent state and British protectorate of North Borneo. He was based in the Tempasuk and Tuaran Districts.
Evans spent much of his career on peninsular Malaya from 1912 until 1932 at the Perak State Museum in Taiping, the first museum in Malaysia. He was appointed Curator there in 1917 and also worked as an ethnographer and archaeologist. After a short term of early retirement [1932-8] Evans returned to Borneo, where he was to spend the rest of his life. He carried out ethnographic research on the religious beliefs, practices and folklore of the Dusuns of the Kota Belud area. During the Japanese occupation of Borneo in World War II, Evans was held as a civilian internee at Batu Lintang camp at Kuching in Sarawak. A collection of Evans’ material, including diaries and photographs taken on peninsular Malaya and in Borneo are held at the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, University of Cambridge (reference GB-1638-MS. Collections, BA5/9/1-7). Evans left a bequest to Cambridge University which led to the creation of the Evans Research Fellowship and the Evans Fund, to promote anthropological and archaeological research in South East Asia.
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Price HK$ 0
“Tried Favourites.” Being a collection of Recipes by some Mamsahibs of Bombay together with Menus and useful Information to House=keepers of both sexes -
Mrs. Fett
1928 - Published in aid of A Special Branch of Y.W.C.A. Work. Printed at The Industrial Press, Bombay - First Edition
‘When the Memsahib has chewed off the end of her pencil in her effort to think of “something different” – and when the cook has achieved his blankest and most aloof expression then will this little book be triumphantly brought forth and opened at the “MENU” pages, and calm will be restored ! !’
Rare little work, which not only provides recipes and menus but also prie lists of the Bombay market, details on domestic servants, stores, and more. With a number of wonderfully illustrated advertisements targeting the modern Memsahib.
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Price HK$ 900
1928 - Published in aid of A Special Branch of Y.W.C.A. Work. Printed at The Industrial Press, Bombay - First Edition
‘When the Memsahib has chewed off the end of her pencil in her effort to think of “something different” – and when the cook has achieved his blankest and most aloof expression then will this little book be triumphantly brought forth and opened at the “MENU” pages, and calm will be restored ! !’Rare little work, which not only provides recipes and menus but also prie lists of the Bombay market, details on domestic servants, stores, and more. With a number of wonderfully illustrated advertisements targeting the modern Memsahib.
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Price HK$ 900
Personal Narrative of Three Years’ Service in China -
Lt.-Colonel Arthur A’Court Fisher – Royal Engineers
1863 - Richard Bentley, London - First Edition
Lt.-Colonel Fisher’s three years of service, are in Canton, the Pei-Ho River, and Taku Fort battles, throughout the Second Opium War. Illustrated with three wood-engraved plates, engraved plan, six in-text engravings and three folding maps at rear.
This not one of your more dry ‘Personal Narrative’ accounts, and is very much in the ‘Personal’. Entertainingly written, one wonders if Lieutenant-Colonel Arthur Agincourt Fisher was in any way related to Harry Flashman....
Lt-Colonel Fisher begins his tales with the action at the Battle of Canton in late 1857, he remains in Canton, occupying his spare time with various adventures and sport (Cricket in Hong Kong, shooting snipe and riding ponies across the Canton countryside ‘Paper-Hunt’ style), and visits to Hong Kong and islands. Fisher then moves up the Pei-Ho River and is involved with the battles around the Taku Forts, as well as surveying the ‘Great Wall’, returning once again to the skirmishes on the Pei-Ho and around Canton. After the third and final ‘Battle of Taku Forts’ at the end of August 1860, Fisher is preparing to head to Peking but is taken sick and forced to spend two months on the hospital ship ‘Mauritius’ whilst hearing news from other wounded officers of the battles around Peking and the looting of the Summer Palace. In November of 1860 Fisher’s service in China ends with his shipment back to England.
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Price HK$ 11,000
1863 - Richard Bentley, London - First Edition
Lt.-Colonel Fisher’s three years of service, are in Canton, the Pei-Ho River, and Taku Fort battles, throughout the Second Opium War. Illustrated with three wood-engraved plates, engraved plan, six in-text engravings and three folding maps at rear.This not one of your more dry ‘Personal Narrative’ accounts, and is very much in the ‘Personal’. Entertainingly written, one wonders if Lieutenant-Colonel Arthur Agincourt Fisher was in any way related to Harry Flashman....
Lt-Colonel Fisher begins his tales with the action at the Battle of Canton in late 1857, he remains in Canton, occupying his spare time with various adventures and sport (Cricket in Hong Kong, shooting snipe and riding ponies across the Canton countryside ‘Paper-Hunt’ style), and visits to Hong Kong and islands. Fisher then moves up the Pei-Ho River and is involved with the battles around the Taku Forts, as well as surveying the ‘Great Wall’, returning once again to the skirmishes on the Pei-Ho and around Canton. After the third and final ‘Battle of Taku Forts’ at the end of August 1860, Fisher is preparing to head to Peking but is taken sick and forced to spend two months on the hospital ship ‘Mauritius’ whilst hearing news from other wounded officers of the battles around Peking and the looting of the Summer Palace. In November of 1860 Fisher’s service in China ends with his shipment back to England.
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Price HK$ 11,000
Sport on the Nilgiris and in Wynaad -
F. W. F. Fletcher
1911 - Macmillan & Co., London - First Edition
‘Fletcher introduces both the terrain and the history of the Nilgiris and Wynaad regions in India, then provides big game chapters on a species-by-species basis. Each of these chapters features not only the natural history of the animals, but also the author's experiences hunting them. Included are chapters devoted to elephant, tiger, leopards, bison, beer, tahr, ibex, sambur, and other deer species.
Fletcher switched from a .450 rifle to a .600 Jeffery: “In cold blood the recoil from his rifle is somewhat severe; but in the excitement of shooting it is not noticeable.”’ - Czech.
Illustrated with 18 plates, and folding coloured map as frontispiece.
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Price HK$ 2,200
1911 - Macmillan & Co., London - First Edition
‘Fletcher introduces both the terrain and the history of the Nilgiris and Wynaad regions in India, then provides big game chapters on a species-by-species basis. Each of these chapters features not only the natural history of the animals, but also the author's experiences hunting them. Included are chapters devoted to elephant, tiger, leopards, bison, beer, tahr, ibex, sambur, and other deer species.Fletcher switched from a .450 rifle to a .600 Jeffery: “In cold blood the recoil from his rifle is somewhat severe; but in the excitement of shooting it is not noticeable.”’ - Czech.
Illustrated with 18 plates, and folding coloured map as frontispiece.
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Price HK$ 2,200
La Guerre de Chine -
G. C. de Fortavion
1862 - Pont-à-Mousson, Paris - First Edition
Oblong folio album of 16 lithographic plates, each accompanied by explanatory text leaf, on boards with hand-coloured lithographed view to upper cover, and lithographed view of Tianjin to lower cover. Housed in modern folding brown cloth case, spine lettered in gilt.
‘The attractive plates show details of fleets, battles and encampments, during General Montauban's campaign in China with the allied army in 1860. The views include Canton, the procession of the Chinese plenipotentiaries at the camp in Tien-Tsin, the Summer Palace, the taking of Pekin and the triumphant entry of the allied armies in Peking’ (Wittockiana, Western Travellers in China).
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Price HK$ 50,000
1862 - Pont-à-Mousson, Paris - First Edition
Oblong folio album of 16 lithographic plates, each accompanied by explanatory text leaf, on boards with hand-coloured lithographed view to upper cover, and lithographed view of Tianjin to lower cover. Housed in modern folding brown cloth case, spine lettered in gilt.‘The attractive plates show details of fleets, battles and encampments, during General Montauban's campaign in China with the allied army in 1860. The views include Canton, the procession of the Chinese plenipotentiaries at the camp in Tien-Tsin, the Summer Palace, the taking of Pekin and the triumphant entry of the allied armies in Peking’ (Wittockiana, Western Travellers in China).
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Price HK$ 50,000
The Shop Signs of Peking -
H. K. Fung
1931 - Issued by the Chinese Painting Association of Peking, China - First Edition limited to 100 Copies
A beautifully hand coloured book showing the signs used by Chinese shopkeepers to advertise their trade, with 101 hand-coloured illustrations of shop signs each accompanied by the Chinese and English description, together with a forward in English by H. K. Fung.
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Price HK$ 41,000
1931 - Issued by the Chinese Painting Association of Peking, China - First Edition limited to 100 Copies
A beautifully hand coloured book showing the signs used by Chinese shopkeepers to advertise their trade, with 101 hand-coloured illustrations of shop signs each accompanied by the Chinese and English description, together with a forward in English by H. K. Fung.
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Price HK$ 41,000