(Nepal, Himalayas), Francis Hamilton: 'An Account of the Kin...

Hammer

£460

(Nepal, Himalayas), Francis Hamilton: 'An Account of the Kingdom of Nepal, and of the Territories Annexed to this Dominion by the House of Gorkha', Edinburgh & London, 1819, 1st edition, half title, 7 engraved plates (of which 5 folding) plus large engraved folding map at end complete as called for, titled "..the Dominions of the House of Gorkha", this generally covering the mountainous Himalaya region of present day Himachal Pradresh and Uttarakhand in Northern India, Nepal, Sikkim, West Bhutan & Southern Tibet, the engraved plates comprising frontis "View of the Temple of Bouddhama in Kasacheit" (Boudhanath stupa, Kathmandu, Nepal), "View of Kathmandu and Lalita Patan from the West", plus 5 folding engraved sectional views of the Himalaya Mountains, 4to, contemporary calf gilt (worn, top board detached but present, lacks large part of backstrip), all edges gilt, Gulielmi Douglas armorial bookplate to front pastedown, later ownership inscription of H.A. Holdich (1874-1964), British Army Lieutenant, 5th Gurkha Rifles. This account describes the country as it stood previous to the war with the British in 1814, the book is divided into 2 parts: The first part has 3 chapters that describes the tribes that inhabit the Gorkha territories along with their manners and customs; the second chapter covers the geography of the country along with its flora and fauna; the third concerns the law and government. The second part has three sections: the first is a description of the states east from the river Kali, it includes a chapter on Sikkim. Further on the next section is of the dominions of the family descended from Makanda Sen, the king of Makwanpur. The book concludes with a section on Nepal proper and a notice on Kumaun, with charts of weather observations from Feb 1802 to March 1803. Surgeon to the Governor General of India, Lord Wellesley from 1803-04, Francis Buchanan-Hamilton (1762-1829) was appointed to a succession of survey posts in Asia, initially in Burma and India. His two years (1802-04) in Nepal were followed by a brief interlude as director of the Natural History Project of India, a short-lived scheme instigated by his patron, Lord Wellesley, and eventually a topographical survey of Bengal. Scarce