Books are meant to be read, Part Three

Apr 25, 2010 Features / Columnists, Guyanese Literature

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– by Petamber Persaud

‘The Twelve Views in the Interior of Guiana’ by Sir Robert Schomburgk, published by the Guyana Heritage Society, 2010

‘The Twelve Views in the Interior of Guiana’ is a big book, a very big book in many ways – physically, imaginatively, geographically, ambitiously, graphically, and descriptively. This big multidimensional book will evoke the natural senses of the reader; this book is provocative, inspirational and entertaining.
Physically, ‘Twelve Views’ measures approximately 19 inches by 13 inches, warranting a bookstand for easy handling, but it is worth every inch of discomfort from the exciting ‘Frontpiece’ sucking the reader into the twelve sublime works of art and unto the accompanying detailed and descriptive text.
Descriptively, ‘Twelve Views’ will blow the mind of the reader. For instance, in the ‘Frontpiece’, Schomburgk writes, ‘It appears as if the productive powers of nature, on receding from the poles, had collected themselves in their greatest strength at the equator, spreading their gifts with open hand, rendering every scene more imposing and majestic, and manifesting the abundant fertility of the soil…Nature as if not satisfied with the soil allotted to her, richly decorates the trunks and limbs of trees, the stones and rocks; even the water is covered with a carpet of plants interspersed by magnificent flowers’.
Graphically, ‘Twelve Views’, is startlingly fresh and magnificent. In the ‘Preface’, Schomburgk declares that credit must go to a number of persons who contributed to twelve artworks namely, John Morrison, a draughtsman, who accompanied Schomburgk on Schomburgk’s first journey to British Guiana, 1835-1839, and who made sketches of localities visited, and Charles Bentley, a watercolour artist who put finishing touches to the sketches by adding colour, light and shade.
Credit for the other graphic dimensions of the books goes to Barnard Gauci and Coke Smyth who drew the images on stone and to Charles Blunt and G. P. Nicholls working on the woodcuts.
Geographically, ‘Twelve Views’, is great in scholarship for academics or for the reader so inclined with the inclusion of a map which ‘delineates the countries visited during my expeditions, and which will assist better than any description in pointing out those spots which have been depicted in the accompanying plates and woodcuts’. So it would be easy to find ‘Pirara’, ‘Roraima’ and ‘Pure-Piapa’ at given latitudes and longitudes. And herein where the scientific account and the sublime description met lays the strength of the book, bringing to the fore Schomburgk’s many talents namely explorer, surveyor, cartographer, botanist, naturalist, and writer.
Robert Schomburgk was born on June 5, 1804, in Freyburg, Germany. His formative years were steeped in the love and interest of nature, natural science and botany. After trying his hand at a few jobs, he finally found his calling in life when in 1831 he submitted to the Royal Geographical Society, London, a map and his findings on Anegada, Virgin Islands. This report found favour with the Society which invited Schomburgk to lead an expedition to explore British Guiana. That expedition undertaking during 1835-1839 resulted in the ‘Twelve Views’.
There is another dimension to Schomburgk as the book reveals in its final pages – his concern for the welfare and wellbeing of the Indigenous peoples because they ‘have not received the attention which I am so anxious to give them’. This is seen through his recording of their life, manners and customs including birth, marriage, death traditions, their food and eating patterns, their love for celebration and dance, language, housing, tools, utensils, games, and physical features ‘so well-proportioned that they might serve as models’.
So much was his concern that Schomburgk put his words to action; after stating that ‘the Indians are capable of progressive improvement, and the establishment of social order, Europeans arts and Christian morals among them is possible’, he took three natives to England in 1839 for a short while in which they did him proud with ‘progressive improvement’.
The first edition of ‘Twelve Views’ in 1940 was an ambitious project taking 360 subscribers to get it published. That first edition was published in colour and black and white, making use of innovative colour lithography. This recent edition published by the Guyana Heritage Society was also an ambitious project — long was the gestation period, but the Society was partnered by the German Technical Cooperation (GTZ) which funded the reprinting.
The reprinting of ‘The Twelve Views in the Interior of Guiana’ by Sir Robert Schomburgk, has reopened the adventure in rediscovering El Dorado – the rich literary heritage of Guyana.
Responses to this author telephone (592) 226-0065 or email: oraltradition2002@ yahoo.com
What’s Happening
· Look out for the staging of the next ‘The Journey’ – an ongoing literature event hosted by the National Art Gallery, Castellani House.
· Be a part of the Ministry of Education ‘Remedial Literacy & Numeracy Programmes’ for Grade 6 pupils from Monday April 19 to Friday July 9, 2010.
· You are invited to the launch of The Guyana Annual 2010 and award ceremony which is billed for the Theatre Guild, Kingston, Georgetown, on May 1, 2010, at 0930 hours (930 am).

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