An Account of an Embassy to the Court of the Teshoo Lama, in Tibet
Containing a Narrative of a Journey through Bootan, and Part of Tibet

The first such work in the English language, this eyewitness description of Tibet and Bhutan was originally published in 1800.

Samuel Turner (Author), Samuel Davis (Illustrated by), Robert Saunders (Assisted by)

9781108061353, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 27 June 2013

532 pages, 13 b/w illus. 1 map
29.7 x 21 x 2.7 cm, 1.26 kg

In 1783, at the opportunity presented by a new Panchen (or Teshoo) Lama, Bengal governor-general Warren Hastings sent a deputation to Tibet and Bhutan in the hope of promoting British-Indian trade across the Himalayas. Samuel Turner (1759–1802), an army officer in the East India Company, was appointed leader of the mission. His journal, offering first-hand descriptions of these countries, was originally published in 1800 and remained the only such English-language work for more than half a century. Assisted by the botanist and surgeon Robert Saunders and the surveyor and illustrator Samuel Davis, Turner interweaves geographical and scientific observations with descriptions of social and religious customs; the vivid account of his reception by the infant Panchen Lama is of particular note. The introduction sketches the history of Bengal–Bhutan relations and George Bogle's prior mission, while later sections deal with Tibet and the influence of China. This was and remains an invaluable account of eighteenth-century diplomacy.

Introduction
1. Narrative of a journey from Bengal to Tassisudon
2. Narrative of a journey from Tassisudon to Teshoo Loomboo
3. Report delivered to the Hon. Warren Hastings Esq.
4. Some account of the vegetable and mineral products of Bootan and Tibet
Appendix.

Subject Areas: Asian history [HBJF]