Narrative of the Voyage of HMS Samarang, during the Years 1843–46 2 Volume Set
Employed Surveying the Islands of the Eastern Archipelago

Belcher's account, published in 1848, includes vivid descriptions of pirates, princes, fascinating cultures, exotic flora and spectacular fauna.

Edward Belcher (Author), Arthur Adams (Appendix by)

9781108029247, Cambridge University Press

Multiple-component retail product, published 31 March 2011

1080 pages, 31 b/w illus. 5 maps
32.3 x 25 x 7 cm, 1.78 kg

Sir Edward Belcher (1799–1877) was a British naval officer who served as surveyor on several long voyages in the Atlantic and Pacific. Published in 1848, this two-volume account, interspersed with charts and illustrations, was the second of his journals to appear in print, and appealed to Victorian readers' enthusiasm for books on exploration, natural history, ethnology and adventure. Volume 1 combines topographical and strategic reports about Borneo, Manila and Singapore with tales of piracy and vivid descriptions of local customs. Volume 2 recounts dramatic episodes on the return journey from Japan via Hong Kong and Mauritius. It also contains an engaging, and sometimes alarming, commentary on flora and fauna by the ship's surgeon, Arthur Adams, in which readers are introduced to spectacular species of spiders, fish and snakes, as well as sensational descriptions of shrunken heads. It also includes a 30-page vocabulary chart for ten Asian languages.

Volume 1: Preface
Index
1. Voyage to Borneo and the Sarawak River
2. Sarawak, Brunai, and Hong-Kong
3. Bashee and Meia-Co-Shimah Islands
4. Sooloo, Manado, Ternate, and Gilolo
5. Singapore and Brunai
6. Ambong, Manila, and Eastern Borneo
7. Eastern coast of Borneo
8. Illanon pirates and Sooloo territory
9. Batan, Hoa-Pin-San and Loo-Choo
10. Quelpart and the Korean Islands. Volume 2: 11. Japan and Loo-Choo
12. Hong-Kong and the Philippines
13. Islands of the Mindoro and Sooloo Seas
14. Labuan to Mauritius
15. Mauritius to England
Conclusion
Part I. Notes from a Journal of Research into the Natural History of the Countries Visited during the Voyage of H.M.S. Samarang Arthur Adams: 1. Cape de Verds, Cape of Good Hope, Java
2. Borneo
3. Bashee and Meia-Co-Shimah groups
4. The Philippine Archipelago
5. The Sooloo and Molucca Archipelagos
6. Singapore and Borneo
7. Borneo
8. Loo-Choo, Korea, Japan
9. Borneo
10. Mauritius to England
Concluding remarks
A brief vocabulary of languages Ernest Adams.

Subject Areas: Asian history [HBJF]