William Adams (1564-1620) was the first Englishman to reach Japan, arriving on a Dutch ship at Bungo (a principality containing present day Usuki City) in May 1600. After a summons by the Emperor at Osaka, imprisonment and interrogation, he was…
Song Lyrics (descriptions and parodies) by Charles R. Thatcher about Otago. Cover shows the price is one shilling. The songster was published and printed by Joseph Mackay. Music is not provided, but a note regarding what tune the song should be sung…
In 1754 Robert Adam left Scotland for France and Italy on a Grand Tour. In Italy he met the French architect, Charles Louis Clérisseau, and the Italian, Giovanni Battista Piranesi, who would both have a significant influence upon him and his later…
Not only does this pamphlet's content affirm that tourism can be local, but the poem by Thomas Bracken praises our local attractions over a selection of the European highlights.
This curious book proved very popular in its day, perhaps because a traveller following its prescriptions could be sure of returning with much new knowledge and a broader understanding of the world. That is, if he survived the cool reactions of the…
By the second half of the eighteenth century, the grand tour had been so frequently recounted that Boswell and Brydone both sought more remote corners of Italy. Boswell's usual irrepressible enthusiasm and undaunted effrontery secured him the…
Into its seventh edition, Brice's guide to Paris clearly satisfied its customers, who needed two volumes just to appreciate what one city had to offer. Illustrations were also clearly a stong selling point, indicating that the book was appreciated at…
Walter Boa Brockie (1897-1972) was the curator of the Otari Open-air Native Plant Museum from 1947 to 1962, following Leonard Cockayne (1926-1934). He had a special interest in alpine plants, having worked with James McPherson on the development of…