Travels in the Himalayan provinces of Hindustan and the Panjab;

£5,000 · Offered by Shapero Rare Books

A charming copy of Moorcroft's scarce classic recounting his travels through the Punjab, Kashmir, and Afghanistan. The narrative traces the journey of the author and Trebeck from Bareilly to Bokhara in the years 1819 to 1825. On reaching the Sutlej river he left his three hundred strong retinue to go on alone to Lahore to meet the Maharajah Ranjit Singh in person and obtain his permission to travel through his land. En route to Bokhara, over five years, he was the first Englishman ever to visit many sites, including Leh, Bamian, and the Oxus, and his was a major contribution to the exploration of the area. Moorcroft was also one of the first to be convinced of the threat to British interests posed by the Russians in Central Asia. He brokered a deal between Britain and the Buddhist government of Ladakh which would have opened up all of Central Asia for trade. The East India Company however, wary of upsetting their alliance with Ranjit Singh, rejected his treaty and suspended him without pay. The work was published posthumously, Moorcroft and his colleagues having died mysteriously on their return journey. First edition; 2 vols, 8vo; lvi, 459; viii, 508pp, 12pp. ads at end (dated December 1840), 2 lithograph frontispieces (lightly foxed) by Haghe after Trebeck, large folding map, original blind-stamped purple cloth gilt, spines faded, neat restoration to joints and extremities, endpapers renewed, a very good set. Riddick, 151; Yakushi M485.

• Binding: Hardcover

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