next »
Deportation of King Thibaw | MS 2475 (1)

DEPORTATION OF KING THIBAW

MS 2475
MS Short Title DEPORTATION OF KING THIBAW
Text DEPORTATION OF KING THIBAW FROM BURMA IN NOVEMBER 1885
Description MS in Pali on cream paper, Mandalay, Burma, 1886-1900, 29 ff. (complete) leporello form, 40x18 cm (full length 537 cm), 1 line in Burmese script, 7 huge pictures covering 2-6 pp., up to 40x107 cm, gouache, in full colours.
Binding Burma, 1886-1900, black lacquer cover.
Provenance 1. Sam Fogg cat. 19(1998):123.
Commentary

 The British annexed Burma in 3 stages, following bitter disputes about commercial and diplomatic relations, in 1826, 1852, and Upper Burma in 1885, when the British expeditionary force under General Prendergast proceeded up the Irrawaddy to the Capital at Mandalay. By the end of November King Thibaw and his family had been deported to India, the Kingdom of Burma had ceased to exist, annexation being declared on 1 Jan. 1886. After the capture of Mandalay Palace, the contents of the Royal library, including the stunning painted folding manuscripts of court life, became known to the outside world. The palace scribes and artists continued to produce MSS, and the deportation of the King was included in the iconography.

The present MS bears remarkable stylistic resemblance to London: Victoria and Albert Museum 1.M.87-1936.
Place of origin Burma
Dates 1886 - 1900 AD