The Russian expedition of 1874 with images of gravures in the report by Dr. P. Piassetsky

 

 

Col. Sosnovsky’s Russian Expedition of 1874 (also see Introduction to Shu Roads):

 

Russian travellers accompanying Col. Sosnovsky’s expedition came to Hanzhong from Hankou along the Han River by boat in 1874 and then travelled to Gansu and Lanzhou via Mianxian, Lüeyang, Huixian and present day Tianshui (Qing period Qin Zhou) along what is today Highway G316. A personal report of the expedition by Dr. Pavel Piassetsky, including gravure productions of his sketches from the places visited was published in 1880 in Russian [R.1] and was quickly translated and published in French (1883) [R.2] and English (1884). The English title is “Russian travellers in Mongolia and China.” (Piassetsky, [R.3]). Apart from the linking roads through the Han Valley, they did not travel by the main Shu Roads but did leave significant information on the secondary roads through Gansu that became so important near the end of WW2. The description of the Han River route from Hankou to Hanzhong is detailed and valuable. The interactions between the Upper Han and the Lower Han and the shipping information from these times are all important in Shu Road research. The difficulties of river travel were recorded in the shipwreck that nearly finished the expedition just north of Shiquan. The expedition included a professional photographer (A.E. Boyarsky) some of whose early photographs of Hanzhong have been included in a recent publication in Chinese by Sun Qixiang [R.4].

 

[R.1] Павел Яковлевич Пясецкий. Путешествие по Китаю в 1874-1875 гг. (Через Сибирь, Монголию, Восточный, Средний и Северо-западный Китай). В двух томах. Тома 1-2. Типография М. Стасюлевича, 1880. (Russian).

 

[R.2] Piassetsky. P. (1883). Voyage a travers la Mongolie et la Chine. Traduit du Russe par Aug. Kuscinski et contenant 90 gravures d’après les croquis de l’Auteur et une carte. Paris, Libraire Hachette et C^ie. (French).

 

[R.3] Piassetsky, P. (1884). Russian travellers in Mongolia and China. Translated by J. Gordon-Cumming. London: Chapman & Hall. Two volumes with folding maps. (English).

 

[R.4] Sun Qixiang (2013). Hanzhong in Old Photographs. Hanzhong Archival Material Research Collection, Sanqin Press, Shaanxi, China. (Chinese).

《汉中旧影》，孙启详著，汉中当案馆编，三秦出版社，2013.

 

Table of Gravure Prints of the Upper Han (use "back" to return to Table)

 

Piassetsky Gravures	French Caption	English Caption
piassetsky_100_small.jpg	Le Docteur P. Piassetsky	Dr. Pavel Yakovlevich Piassetsky
piassetsky_101_small.jpg	La Ville de Lao-Ho_Keou	The Town of Laohekou (老河口)
piassetsky_102_small.jpg	Vue prise dans le Han Supérieur	Upper Han scenery
piassetsky_103_small.jpg	Vue de la Ville d’Yun-Yang-Fou	View of the Town of Yunyang Fu (鄖陽府)
piassetsky_104_small.jpg	Quai de la Ville d’Yun-Yang-Fou	The quay at Yunyang Fu
piassetsky_105_small.jpg	Vue générale de Bai-Ho-Sian	General view of Baihe Xian (白河县)
piassetsky_106_small.jpg	Fabrication du papier	Paper making (Zhangjia Ba?)
piats_Scan01_small.jpg	Navigation à travers les rapides	Navigating through the rapids.
piats_Scan02_small.jpg	Ville de Sin-Añ-Fou.	City of Xing’an Fu (兴安府).
piats_Scan03_small.jpg	Plate-forme du mur d'enceinte et temple d'un club à Sin-Añ-Fou	Ramparts and Temple of a Club at Xing’an Fu.
piats_Scan04_small.jpg	Vue de la ville de Tsy-Yan-Siañ, prise le soir	View of Ziyang Xian (紫阳县) in the evening.
piats_Scan05_small.jpg	Tsy-Yan-Siañ. Temple et jardin	Ziyang Xian. Temple and Garden.
piats_Scan07_small.jpg	Pêcheurs dans le Han supérieur	Fishermen of the upper Han.
piats_Scan08_small.jpg	Tordage de cordons	Making laces.
piats_Scan09_small.jpg	Tour de la ville de Che-Tsouen-Chien	Tower in the city of Shiquan Xian (石泉县).
piats_Scan10_small.jpg	Le naufrage	The shipwreck.
piats_Scan11_small.jpg	Halage de bateaux et rencontre d'un radeau	Hauling the boat and meeting a raft.
piats_Scan12_small.jpg	Sillon creusé dans le fond de la rivière	Digging a furrow on the river bottom [to make a passage for the boat].
piats_Scan13_small.jpg	Entrée de la ville de Han-Tchong-Fou	Entrance to the City of Hanzhong Fu (汉中府)
piats_Scan14_small.jpg	Temple de Fou-Miao	Fo (Buddha) Temple (佛庙).
piats_Scan15_small.jpg	Service dans le temple de Tchen-Houan-Miao	Service in the Zhen Guan Temple (镇关庙?).
piats_Scan16_small.jpg	Une école à Han-Tchong-Fou	A school in Hanzhong Fu.
piats_Scan17_small.jpg	Portrait de "madame la Générale"	Portrait of "Madam General".
piats_Scan18_small.jpg	Diner envoyé par les autorités chinoises	Food provided by the Chinese authorities.
piats_Scan19_small.jpg	Vue prise à Lo-Yan-Siañ	View of approach to Lüeyang Xian (略阳县).