East sails West : the voyage of the Keying, 1846-1855 / Stephen Davies.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Davies, Stephen.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Voyages and travels--History--19th century.

Voyages and travels.

Junks--China--History--19th century.

Junks.

Sailors--China--History--19th century.

Sailors.

Sailors--Europe--History--19th century.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (377 p.)

Place of Publication:

Hong Kong : Hong Kong University Press, [2014]

Language Note:

English

Summary:

In December 1846, the Keying, a Chinese junk purchased by British investors, set sail from Hong Kong for London. Named after the Chinese Imperial Commissioner who had signed away Hong Kong to the British, manned by a Chinese and European crew, and carrying a travelling exhibition of Chinese items, the Keying had a troubled voyage. After quarrels on the way and a diversion to New York, culminating in a legal dispute over arrears of wages for Chinese members of the crew, it finally reached London in 1848, where it went on exhibition on the River Thames until 1853. It was then auctioned off, towed to Liverpool, and finally broken up. In this account of the ship, the crew and the voyage, Stephen Davies tells a story of missed opportunities, with an erratic course, overambitious aims, and achievements born of lucky breaks -- a microcosm, in fact, of early Hong Kong and of the relations between China and the West.

Contents:

part I. The voyage of the Keying

part II. The ship itself : type, build, performance

part III. The scrapyard of history.

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (ebrary, viewed December 11, 2013).

ISBN:

9789888268221

9888268228

9789888268207

9888268201

OCLC:

862614309