IO Islamic 4073 (Oriental Manuscripts, British Library)
Irvine Collection
Anglo-Russian relations
Contents
Untitled and anonymous (secret?) report on Anglo-Russian political and military relations, detailing British measures to confront Russian Imperial expansion in the 1820s-30s, possibly prepared for or by officials of the Bengal Presidency
Mentions the attitudes and involvement of rulers in Iran, Afghanistan, Ottoman Turkey, Africa (Zangī), and China, and covering subjects like food, provisioning, military movements, itineraries, and the burning of books
The narrative is continuous, lacking systematic dating, rubrics, preface or introduction. Versified conclusion (ff. 141v-148r)
Colophon (f. 148) in 2 parts: 1) chronogrammatic verse stating the manuscript was written at the request of Arjun Singh in 1893; 2) prose subscription in Urdu: ‘vāẓiḥ ho kih yih kitāb aṣal 19 Bisākh-i sanah 1893 Bikramī men̲ tayyār hūʾī’. William Irvine has converted the Bikrami date to 1836 CE.
Copied from an original =-=-=-=-
Physical Description
Condition
Binding in poor state, spine missing entirely
Hand(s)
Rough and large nastaʿlīq in grey, watery ink
History
Availability
Entry to read in the Library is permitted only on presentation of a valid reader's card for admissions procedures contact British Library, Registering for a Reader Pass. Contact apac-enquiries@bl.uk for further information on the availability of this manuscript. For information on catalogues and ordering manuscripts see Finding and ordering Persian manuscripts in the British Library.
Funding of Cataloguing
BL
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