The Works of Sir William Jones
With the Life of the Author by Lord Teignmouth

The complete thirteen-volume works, with memoir, of the orientalist and poet Sir William Jones (1746–94), first published in 1807.

William Jones (Author), Lord Teignmouth (Edited by)

9781108055765, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 28 March 2013

632 pages, 78 b/w illus.
21.6 x 14 x 3.6 cm, 0.79 kg

A renowned Enlightenment polymath, Sir William Jones (1746–94) was a lawyer, translator and poet who wrote authoritatively on politics, comparative linguistics and oriental literature. Known initially for his Persian translations and political radicalism, Jones became further celebrated for his study and translation of ancient Sanskrit texts following his appointment to the supreme court in Calcutta in 1783. He spent the next eleven years introducing Europe to the mysticism and rationality of Hinduism through works such as his nine 'Hymns' to Hindu deities and his translation of the Sanskrit classic Sacontalá. Volume 8 of his thirteen-volume works, published in 1807, contains more of Jones' legal work, including his pre-India tracts on Islamic laws of succession and inheritance - culturally comparative works debunking prejudiced claims that Islamic cultures denied private property. Also included is his formative 'Essay on the Law of Bailments' (1781), a work still cited in some legal cases today.

9. On judicature (cont.)
10. On the mixed classes, and on times of distress
11. On penance and expiation
12. On transmigration and final beatitude
General note
Letter to the Right Honourable Henry Dundas
The mahomedan law of succession to property of intestates
Al Sirajiyyah, or the mohammedan law of inheritance
An essay on the law of bailments
An inquiry into the legal mode of suppressing riots
Speech on 28th May, 18782
Letter to * * *
The Principles of Government
Character of Lord Ashburton.

Subject Areas: Asian history [HBJF]