Porcher, Edwin Augustus, 1824-1878, 21. Amoy with part of the island of Ku-Lang-Su taken from the outer anchorage of Cornwallis’ Rock. June 3rd, 1852, 1852 June 3
- Call Number:
- MSS 38
- Creator:
- Porcher, Edwin Augustus, 1824-1878
- Title(s):
- 21. Amoy with part of the island of Ku-Lang-Su taken from the outer anchorage of Cornwallis’ Rock. June 3rd, 1852.
- Date:
- 1852 June 3
- Classification:
- Archives and Manuscripts
- Series:
- Series I: Drawings
- Part of Collection:
- Oversize 1
- Provenance:
- E.A. Porcher donated 16 drawings related to his Cyrene expedition to the British Museum in 1865. He left his remaining papers and watercolor works to Lieut. Col. Cecil Du Pre Penton Powney (b. 1862), his sister’s surviving son, who donated views, plans and elevations from the Cyrene expedition to the British Museum in 1894. The remaining manuscripts and drawings were inherited by Powney’s daughter, Beryl Wyndham Powney (c. 1896 -1976). Several components of the Porcher collection were sold by private dealers beginning in the 1970s (see 'Related Archival Materials Note' for Porcher holdings in other institutional collections).
- Conditions Governing Access:
- The materials are open for research.
- Conditions Governing Use:
- The collection is the physical property of the Yale Center for British Art. Literary rights, including copyright, belong to the authors or their legal heirs and assigns. For further information, consult the Curator of Rare Books and Manuscripts.
- Scope and Content:
- As Porcher notes in his diary, Amoy (today called Xiamen) was the most important harbor in the province of Fujian and was dominated by foreign trade at the turn of the 18th century. The island of Kulang Su (Gulangyu), on the western side of Xiamen’s harbor, was once occupied by British troops after the capture of the city in 1841 until it was restored to Chinese in 1845 (Nield 99). Its five British batteries are still visible in Porcher’s view. In his diary, he expounds the strategic advantages of this location: “In case of another misunderstanding with the Chinese the island of Kulang-su would be well adapted for a settlement, the channel between it and Amoy being only 672 yards wide – the ridge of hills on the island being higher than those opposite. There are two distinct ridges which might be separately defended, the highest point being 280 feet above the sea. The island is principally granite, and the soil being formed of it in a decomposed state…. Fresh water from wells are plentiful, and artificial channels conduct it to boats” (53).
- Additional Notes:
- B1977.14.22223
- Physical Description:
- 1 drawing : watercolor, body color, heightened with white, on medium-thick beige paper, affixed to card mount ; sheet 23 x 36 cm, mount 36.5 x 52 cm
- Genre:
- Watercolors (paintings), Pictorial works, Diaries, Letters, and Ships' logs
- Subject Terms:
- Anglo-Burmese War, 2nd, 1852AntiquitiesAntiquities, RomanChronColoniesDescription and travelExcavations (Archaeology)FortificationHarborsHistory, NavalJunksNavigationPagodasPiracyPiratesPunic antiquitiesShipsTemplesVoyages and travels
- Subject Period:
- 1849-18611850-1900
- Associated Places:
- AsiaBurmaCarthage (Extinct city)ChinaChina SeaCyrene (Extinct city)East AsiaGozo Island (Malta)Grand Harbour (Malta)Great BritainGuangzhou (China)Gulangyu Qu (Xiamen Shi, China)Hong Kong (China)MaltaMellieh̳a (Malta)Pulau Pinang (Malaysia : State)Qrendi (Malta)SingaporeTrincomalee (Sri Lanka)Tunis (Tunisia)TunisiaUtica (Extinct city)Valletta (Malta)Xiamen Shi (China)
- Associated People/Groups:
- Boxer (Ship : 1855-1865)Cleopatra (Ship : 1843)Davis, N. (Nathan), 1812-1882Great Britain. Royal NavyHarpy (Ship : 1845-1909)Hibernia (Ship : 1804-1902)Kertch (Ship)Melville, Harden Sidney, active 1837-1882Porcher, Edwin A., 1824-1878Porcher, Madelina
- Finding Aid Title:
- Edwin Augustus Porcher Collection
- Archival Object:
- https://archives.yale.edu/repositories/3/archival_objects/2817
- Metadata Cloud URL:
- https://metadata-api.library.yale.edu/metadatacloud/api/aspace/repositories/3/archival_objects/2817?mediaType=json&include-notes=1&include-all-subjects=1