Shakespear, Captain William Henry Irvine

123 folios of mimeographed typescript (253 x 201mm.), comprising 119 numbered sheets, in two parts: fol.1-62 (3 Feb. to 31 March) on 'Emissary Bond' watermarked paper, and fol.1-57 (1 April to 25 May) on 'British Bond' watermarked paper, together with a title-page and three unnumbered folios (after the title "The following are the names of the main recognised routes near Kuwait", after fol.30 "Sadair Villages", and after fol.39 "Notes re Country to South of Riadh"), OCCASIONAL PENCIL OR INK ANNOTATIONS IN THE HAND OF DOUGLAS CARRUTHERS, unbound

TOGETHER WITH: a large folding coloured map "Northern Arabia" with printed routes showing Shakespear's travels (700 x 1000mm.) by Douglas Carruthers (Printed at the War Office for the Royal Geographical Society, March 1922; for The Geographical Journal, May 1922)

Douglas Carruthers FRGS (1882-1962) "the typescript bears a few pencilled annotations in his hand, which suggests that the document probably reached the Society through him" (H. Leach. Strolling About the Roof of the World (London, 2003), p.210 note 23)

cf. Douglas Carruthers. Captain Shakespear's last journey (in Geographical Journal, London, May-June 1922), vol.59, no.5, pp.321-344, and vol.59, no.6, pp.401-488; cf. H.V.F. Winstone. Captain Shakespear: a portrait (London, 1977); cf. P. Harrigan. The Captain and the King (Saudi Aramco World, September/October 2002, pp.12-21)

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, where appropriate.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

A RARE EARLY COPY OF AN IMPORTANT UNPUBLISHED ACCOUNT OF SHAKESPEAR'S HISTORIC JOURNEY IN 1914 FROM KUWAIT ACROSS CENTRAL ARABIA VIA RIYADH TO SUEZ. INCLUDING ACCOUNTS OF HIS DEALINGS WITH IBN SAUD, THE FUTURE KING AND FOUNDER OF MODERN DAY SAUDI ARABIA.

Shakespear made seven journeys through Arabia between 1909 and 1914. This diary is a record of his seventh and last expedition, an epic 1,800 mile journey across mostly uncharted territory. In addition to the details of his struggles and negotiations with tribal leaders, Shakespear also records his meteorological observations, and photography.

Shakespear (1878-1915), was a British diplomat and explorer who mapped uncharted areas of Northern Arabia and made the first official British contact with Abdul Aziz Ibn Saud. The meeting took place in February 1910 at the palace of Sheikh Mubarak of Kuwait, where Shakespear took the first recorded photograph of Ibn Saud. Shakespear became military adviser to Ibn Saud, which position he kept until his death in the battle of Jarrab in 1915 when he was shot and killed by one of Ibn Rashid's men.

Shakespear had begun his career in the Indian army, and during this six year period learnt Arabic, Persian, Pushtu, and Urdu. He was then transferred to the political department of the Indian government, and was appointed consul at Bandar Abbas and assistant to the political agent in the Persian Gulf in 1904. He was appointed political agent in Kuwait in 1909, which position he held until 1914.

The original journal of Shakespear's travels is in the British Library (IOPP/Mss Eur A230), donated in 2001 by Dr Omar Pound, great-nephew of Captain Shakespear.