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In caring for the collections and making them accessible to researchers various lists and catalogues have been collated throughout the Society's history. Some of these have been published but many are unpublished or in draft form prior to publication. These have been kept as important sources of both information about the nature of the collections and also how the Society has historically organised them. Please note, however, that not all the items in the catalogues and lists are still within the Society's collections.

This archive consists of correspondence, documentation, reports and allied material concerned with the loans of the Collections of the Society to other institutions predominantly for exhibition but sometimes for more long-term care. The Society has not kept comprehensive records throughout its history. Further information pertaining to the Loans from the Society can be found in the Minutes for the meetings of the Council and Library Committees. Loans continue in the life of the Society. More recent ones are held in the Society's records management system and will be transferred to the archive in due course.

The Royal Asiatic Society has operated as a membership organisation since its founding. This collection contains records relating to the Society's membership, including administrative and financial documents such as membership lists and subscriptions ledgers, papers relating to membership application and election, as well as other textual and visual material which came into the Society's holdings as a result of its interaction with members.

The relationship between the Society and its members is further documented in this collection through letters, notices and other communications such as newsletters.

The records of the Public School Medal cover the institution of the medal and the conferment of the Honour in subsequent years. They include examples of the medal, an original Declaration of Trust, and subsequent printed versions of the declaration; correspondence and newspaper cuttings. However there are not records for all instances of the presentation of the Medal. Researchers are advised to also examine the Council Minutes and the Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society (both held in the RAS Collections) when researching concerning the Public School Medal and its recipients.

A handwritten manuscript of the Grammaire Tagalog by Aristide Marre with a Vocabulaire tagalog-francais-anglais by Aristide Marre and Isabelle Pinches. With these are the original housing envelope, two explanatory labels and a letter to request the publication of these works.

"Notes on Cudapah" (Kadapa), "Read July 17/30" "Ordered not to be printed Nov 13/30" with label "Catalogue of English MSS. II No 5, Cuddapah, Presented by Mrs Skinner and read before the Society on 17 July 1830. Three anecdotes concerning traditions:

• The self-devotion of a headman of the village of Chitwail
• An account of the "Assaree Shereef" - a building erected to contain a hair from the beard of Muhammad
• The behaviour of a fakir Handwritten, 3 pages + label.

This manuscript and details concerning it are found in the Society's "Catalogue of English Manuscripts in the R.A.S.", p.20.

Six letters from William Macbean George Colebrooke to Sir Alexander Johnston in which he corresponds, among other things, concerning the beginnings of the Asiatic Society in London.

From 1904-1929 the Royal Asiatic Society awarded a Gold Medal to a schoolboy writing on a chosen essay title. However, as entrants dwindled and few schools seemed interested in teaching Indian history, it was decided that the competition should be changed to one for undergraduate students. The change was finalised on 15th December 1931. Regulations for the University Prize Essay Fund were drawn up in 1932 and the first prize was awarded in 1933. In 1939, Professor Perceval Yetts designed a certificate to be presented with the prize (an example of this can be found in these papers). The prize was initially awarded annually but then became biennial. The prize money also increased at various intervals.
The records of the Universities Prize Essay cover the conversion from the Public School Medal to the Universities Prize Essay Fund, governance of the award and the conferment of the Honour in subsequent years. They include Rules, correspondence, and winning essays. However there are not records for all instances of the presentation of the award. Researchers are advised to also examine the Council Minutes and the Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society (both held in the RAS Collections) when researching concerning the Universities Prize Essay and its recipients.

In 1973 the Royal Asiatic Society celebrated its Sesquicentenary (150 years). The archival material includes Planning committee administration; material connected with the various events held, exhibitions put on and publications produced in celebration of the occasion; and material concerned with fundraising for the Society.

The Barwis-Holliday was established in 1977 by the donation of investments to the value of £690 by Major J.E. Barwis-Holliday and supplemented by a bequest of £1,000 from the estate of the donor. The income was to be used to finance a monetary award for a paper upon a Far-Eastern subject to be published in the Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society. These papers consist of material created in the administration and conferment of the award.