Diary of Joseph F.C. Rock
- Reference:GB 235 JFR/1/1/20
- Dates of Creation:1926, 1933-1934
- Name of Creator:
- Language of Material:Chinese English Diary contains some notes on Naxi script in the form of discussion, transcription and translation of Naxi Domba manuscripts held in European museums.
- Physical Description:1 diary
Scope and Content
Diary of Joseph F.C. Rock; April to May 1926; May 1933 to March 1934.
Joseph Rock’s diary covering the dates 23 April 1926 – 22 May 1926; includes:
- Notes on ‘Amnyi Machen’ [Amnye Machen]; Story of Dzambala and Notes on tribes around Amnyi Machen. (pp.3-22)
- Followed by list of pictures sent to Washington (p.22); Notes on diaries mailed in March 1927 (p.23);
- Notes on Yunnan literature (p.24)
1 May 1933 – 28 March 1934 (pp.25-279; includes:
- lists of books and articles relevant to Yunnan and China;
- List of books in the Library of Joseph F. Rock (pp.57-72)
- Trunks left in cold storage in Hong Kong (pp.132-133) and trunks to be taken along (p.134)
- Monday November 13th 1933: “Alone as usual… As I looked out over the grey smoky landscape I pitied the Chinese to be forced upon them by outsiders the chaotic artificial life of the west. My mind wandered to far away Nda za gko to the lovely alpine meadows on the Likiang Snow Range [Yulong Xue Shan] where reigns eternal peace. In spite of all the glitter and good food and comfort, etc on this boat it is all artificial. Here one looses [sic] contact with the great spirit of nature. I am longing for a quiet spot where I can stay with my Nakhi boys and live in peace, where I shall not have to move again except when the great day comes when I shall go to my eternal rest. When I behold the women on this ship, artificial, all flesh and no soul I shudder when I think what their life must be; a decorated painted shell ever moving but getting nowhere except farther away from what should be the real life of contemplation and unselfishness.” (pp.152-153)
- Meeting Handel-Mazzetti in Vienna and discussing the government and Sacher (pp.219-222)
- Transcription/translation of a Dongba book donated by Handel-Mazzetti to the Natural History Museum in Vienna (pp.235-239)
- Brief discussion of a Dongba book donated by Frank Kingdon Ward to the British Museum (pp.261-262)
- Meeting with Walter Rothschild, January 1934 (pp.273-278)
- Letter in Chinese script pasted into the diary on p.279: ‘Letter from Y…gning announcing the death of my good old friend the Tsong Kwan, a descendant of the great Kubilai Khan’ [Kublai Khan]
- Chinese script (pp.281-298)
Diary includes a loose photograph of the Watson family taken in 1947, and loose page of Chinese script.
Diary has a '35' on its spine.Administrative / Biographical History
Born Vienna, Austria 1884; died Hawaii 1962
Relatively uneducated, penniless and often in poor health Joseph Rock left Vienna as a young man in 1902, travelling through Europe and on to the United States. Moving to Hawaii where he was appointed by the Division of Forestry as its first botanical collector, he became a naturalised American in 1913. Although self taught as a botanist, Rock was appointed lecturer at the College in Hawaii, established its first herbarium, and served as its first curator from 1911 until 1920. In 1920 he was appointed by the US Department of Agriculture to find a tree in south east Asia the oil from which was supposed to be useful in treating leprosy. This was the start of his new life as an explorer and in 1922 he arrived in Lijiang, Yunnan which was to become his ‘home’ province though he also travelled widely in Szechuan, Gansu and also Tibet. He was to spend the next 27 years living among the people of the Western Provinces of China collecting plants for western museums and exploring and mapping mountains on the Tibetan border. Working for organisations such as Harvard University’s Arnold Arboretum, the United States Department of Agriculture, the United States Natural History Museum and the National Geographic Society, he photographed and wrote about the indigenous plants, people and geography of the remote region. He entered the lamaseries of Tibet and became deeply involved in the social and political conditions that affected Western China, witnessing much brutality during various rebellions. He was forced to leave communist China in 1949, but continued travelling around the world, eventually returning to Hawaii where he died in 1962. Rock bequeathed his extensive photographic collection to the archives of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, alongside his diaries documenting his travels.
Source: ‘In China’s Border Provinces; The Turbulent Career of Joseph Rock’ S.B. Sutton. ‘Joseph Rock and His Shangri-La’ Jim Goodman. Archives
D.W.Access Information
Collection is open to researchers by appointment, see (right click, open link in new tab:) https://www.rbge.org.uk/science-and-conservation/library-and-archives/visiting-the-library/
Note
Born Vienna, Austria 1884; died Hawaii 1962
Relatively uneducated, penniless and often in poor health Joseph Rock left Vienna as a young man in 1902, travelling through Europe and on to the United States. Moving to Hawaii where he was appointed by the Division of Forestry as its first botanical collector, he became a naturalised American in 1913. Although self taught as a botanist, Rock was appointed lecturer at the College in Hawaii, established its first herbarium, and served as its first curator from 1911 until 1920. In 1920 he was appointed by the US Department of Agriculture to find a tree in south east Asia the oil from which was supposed to be useful in treating leprosy. This was the start of his new life as an explorer and in 1922 he arrived in Lijiang, Yunnan which was to become his ‘home’ province though he also travelled widely in Szechuan, Gansu and also Tibet. He was to spend the next 27 years living among the people of the Western Provinces of China collecting plants for western museums and exploring and mapping mountains on the Tibetan border. Working for organisations such as Harvard University’s Arnold Arboretum, the United States Department of Agriculture, the United States Natural History Museum and the National Geographic Society, he photographed and wrote about the indigenous plants, people and geography of the remote region. He entered the lamaseries of Tibet and became deeply involved in the social and political conditions that affected Western China, witnessing much brutality during various rebellions. He was forced to leave communist China in 1949, but continued travelling around the world, eventually returning to Hawaii where he died in 1962. Rock bequeathed his extensive photographic collection to the archives of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, alongside his diaries documenting his travels.
Source: ‘In China’s Border Provinces; The Turbulent Career of Joseph Rock’ S.B. Sutton. ‘Joseph Rock and His Shangri-La’ Jim Goodman. Archives
D.W.A scan of a photocopy of the diary is available for personal research via the link below:
(right click, open link in new tab) https://rbge.resourcespace.com/?r=4048&k=8df117d618
For permission to use the material, please contact the RBGE Library.Physical Characteristics and/or Technical Requirements
Diary contains inserts so care required when handling.
Diary should be supported when in use.Archivist's Note
Description revised by L. Paterson in July 2024.
This diary had previously been catalogued as ‘Volume 20’ but it is unclear as to why as Rock has not annotated it as such. During re-ordering and re-cataloguing in 2024, ‘Volume 20’ has been removed from the title, but the catalogue reference of JFR/1/1/20 has been retained as this reflects where the diary is located now the last six diaries are in chronological order. L.Paterson.
This diary may contain, either in its content or catalogue description, terminology, language and attitudes which are today considered inappropriate, outdated, offensive or distressing.
Conditions Governing Use
Permission required from RBGE.
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