MONASH COLLECTIONS

[Notes on China : a merchant’s notebook containing observations and research]

DETAILS

Title[Notes on China : a merchant’s notebook containing observations and research]PublisherCanton now Guangzhou, China : self-publishedDescriptionA Canton-based western merchant records his growing understanding of Chinese society, comparing classic European accounts with his first-hand experiences. Taking special exception to the Eurocentrism of John Barrow, a member of the Macartney Embassy, the merchant increasingly embraces an Enlightenment perspective rooted in cultural relativism. Overall, this is a journal that far exceeds the usual scope of records kept by pre-Opium War members of the Canton expatriate community and demonstrates the impact of classic works of sinology and increasingly vocal orientalist critiques. The format, as well as the information presented, suggests a careful, informed writer. The pages are numbered by hand and indexed over three sides at the front, allowing the volume to serve as an accessible compendium for the use of himself and colleagues. Individual entries self-reference other pages and, while the front pastedown is dated 1805, footnotes are added as new information comes to light. For the epigraph, he uses a quote from page 144 of George Staunton's An Authentic Account of an Embassy from the King of Great Britain to the Emperor of China; this citation corresponds to Volume II of the 1799 Philadelphia pirated edition, suggesting that the compiler either travelled in America or was close to Americans in Canton.ContentsSection I. Notes on customs prevalent in China -- Section II. Extracts from the writings of a Chinese philosopher, copied from Du Halde -- Section III. Strictures on Barrow's travels in China -- Section IV. Notes on the similarity of some customs congenial to different nations far separated.LanguageEnglish

COVERAGE

DateBetween 1st January 1805 and 31st December 1805SubjectDu Halde, J.-B (Jean-Baptiste), 1674-1743 historianBarrow, John civil servant, writer, geographer, linguistOpium trade -- China -- 19th centuryChina -- Social life and customsGreat Britain -- Commerce -- ChinaChina -- Commerce -- Great Britain

SERIES

Library CollectionRare BooksExhibitionSelf Cultivation: From East to West

ABOUT THE ORIGINAL

MMS ID9940895725301751Monash University LibraryCatalogue RecordPhysical Item TypeTextGenre/FormManuscripts (documents)Medium/CarrierVolumeExtent1 manuscript (141 pages) : illustrations ; 25 cm; in a cloth protective box 27 x 18.5 cm

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[Notes on China : a merchant’s notebook containing observations and research]