A Hundred Years of Modern Exploration in Xinjiang: A Journey Through the Sea of Sands Without Navigation Aids

Author: Tian Weijiang
Publisher:
Publish Date: 1998-09-01
Features: This book was originally published in 2001 under the title "A Journey Through the Desert Without a Compass – A Century of Modern Xinjiang Exploration." Five years later, the publisher revised and reissued it, clearly driven by societal demand. The author is naturally overwhelmed by this recognition. This revised edition, in addition to adding some necessary illustrations, only makes minor corrections to individual texts, with the content remaining unchanged. When it comes to the history of modern Xinjiang exploration, the activities of numerous foreign explorers and research teams in Xinjiang are an unavoidable topic. Regarding their activities and evaluations in the Xinjiang region, the preface of this book – "Searching for Them a Thousand Times in the Vastness" – has made certain efforts. On this occasion of the second edition, based on the achievements of academia in recent years, the author would like to add a few more words to supplement the discussion. This collection of rare materials is abundant in quantity and rich in content, and has never been disclosed before, making it particularly valuable. The publication of these archival materials undoubtedly provides us with a rare primary source for a comprehensive and accurate understanding and evaluation of the activities of modern foreign historical figures in China, as well as for an in-depth exploration of modern China-foreign relations. In particular, the release of these archival documents will greatly break the previously dominant situation where foreign-language materials were the only source for related research, further enriching and refining our past research conclusions. Therefore, it deserves close attention from the academic community.