A 16thC Dha Reference?

B.I · 12th August 2005, 06:55 PM

hi andrew,
the letters and accounts were published in 1930 by j.courtenay locke.
i finished reading it last night and enjoyed it. i loved victorian english for their eloquence and politeness, which i find almost musical.
16thC english is quite matter of fact and abrupt (almost). maybe because these were letters and they were trying to get as much information in as little space as possible.
unfortunately there was very little real information useful for me (and swords collectors in general). i skimmed a lot of the letters in areas of less interest to me so i amy have missed something but i dont think so. the best reference i found was the one i posted.
it does paint a good picture of the trade routes and i think they were much wider than most people think. each trading post is filled with most 'popular' cultures of the time, whether eastern or western.
siam gets a colourful description and the king is very 'yul brynner'.
the footnote is interesting, especially the burying of dha to appease feuds. we can imagine many feuds since the 16thC so i suggest a metal detector and a quick flight!
i believe the book has been reprinted in india, which is normally quite cheap. dont get your hopes up though, as it covers 4 or 5 travellers and the whole of the east, with much attention spent on politeness and spices.
i have an original copy which i am done with. if you pay the postage, i'll happily donate it to a worthier cause.

12th August 2005, 06:55 PM	#3
B.I Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 485	hi andrew, the letters and accounts were published in 1930 by j.courtenay locke. i finished reading it last night and enjoyed it. i loved victorian english for their eloquence and politeness, which i find almost musical. 16thC english is quite matter of fact and abrupt (almost). maybe because these were letters and they were trying to get as much information in as little space as possible. unfortunately there was very little real information useful for me (and swords collectors in general). i skimmed a lot of the letters in areas of less interest to me so i amy have missed something but i dont think so. the best reference i found was the one i posted. it does paint a good picture of the trade routes and i think they were much wider than most people think. each trading post is filled with most 'popular' cultures of the time, whether eastern or western. siam gets a colourful description and the king is very 'yul brynner'. the footnote is interesting, especially the burying of dha to appease feuds. we can imagine many feuds since the 16thC so i suggest a metal detector and a quick flight! i believe the book has been reprinted in india, which is normally quite cheap. dont get your hopes up though, as it covers 4 or 5 travellers and the whole of the east, with much attention spent on politeness and spices. i have an original copy which i am done with. if you pay the postage, i'll happily donate it to a worthier cause.