Shanghai - Sketches of Present-day Shanghai.

£1,200 · Offered by Maggs Bros Ltd

“Shanghai is aptly called the ‘Paris of the East’, where the East meets West. It is an ultra-cosmopolitan city with so much human interest, fascinating in its mixture of old and new. Shanghai as a whole is exceedingly pleasure seeking, the night life of this city is internationally famous. Many European, American and Chinese night clubs, cabarets and restaurants hold forth nightly to the edification of the residents and travelers alike.” Nothing is known about the author Barz but he may have been German or French Jew. This book is extraordinary for it’s description of everyday life in Shanghai as well as the choice of images some of which were taken by the author while others were supplied by the North China Daily News. Barz shows the coolies, the rickshaw drivers, the sing-song girls, the street merchants, wedding or funeral processions, as well as the beggars of Shanghai. He seems to have a certain penchant for the low-life of the city and always speaks sympathetically about the Chinese. Very rare.

• Year: 1935

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