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 Some of these have been published but many are unpublished or in draft form prior to publication.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.
Sem títuloThe 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.
Sem títuloThe Royal Asiatic Society Medal was instigated in 2000 to replace the Society's Triennial Gold Medal and to be awarded in recognition of an outstanding contribution to scholarship in the field of Asian Studies. A new design for the Medal was sought and this was commissioned from Danuta Solowiej-Wedderburn. The medal took longstanding symbols of the Society and gave them a modern twist. She suggested:
'The starting point for the design of the medal was an article by John Hansman in the Society's Journal of 1984: ‘The Emblems, Medals and Medallists of The Royal Asiatic Society’. I was very inspired by the Daniells’ design of a caparisoned elephant for a signet, first produced in 1824, which was used to seal letters and documents. A simplified version of this design by Professor Perceval Yetts has become the ‘logo’ of the society, stamped on its letter head and on all its publications, and so it was a particularly appropriate image to use. I depicted the signet impressed into the brass as if it were wax, to act as a metaphor for the medal as a ‘seal of approval’. Unlike most Victorian award medals the lettering is incised, this is so that it will blend in with the name of the recipient, which obviously has to be engraved at a later date. In 1823 the Banyan tree was chosen for the society’s official seal by the Council and it has been depicted on previous medals commissioned by the society. It is a magnificent tree and an apt symbol of the society, growing strong and branching out. The medal was cast (rather than struck) which allows for more depth in modelling and I tried to take advantage of that by depicting the tree as a mature and vigorous plant, still growing strongly.' (Email, see details in the catalogue).
The medal was first awarded to John Gullick in 2001 with subsequent awards being made:
2003 – Professor Edmund Bosworth
2006 – Professor Christopher Shackle
2009 – Professor Sir Christopher Bayly
2014 – Dr Bridget Allchin and Professor David Bivar
2019 - Professors Carole and Robert Hillenbrand
2023 – Robert Irwin
The material covered by this catalogue consists of correspondence and administrative documents concerning the setting up of the award and the commissioning of the medal, and the individual awards. There are also photographs of some of the award events and a sample of the medal.
Sem títuloLetters, receipts and certificates concerning the Society's investments in the period 1881-1889. These are:
- Letters from Herries, Farquhar and Co., concerning attempted investment. Two letters with a memorandum from Steer, Lawford and Cuerton, dated 29 September 1881 - 29 March 1882.
- Receipts and certificates for investments from Herries, Farquhar and Co., 4 pieces, dated 18 March - 4 May 1882.
- Letter from Herries, Farquhar and Co., concerning an investment made on behalf of the Society, 1 piece, dated 22 July 1884.
- Receipts and certificates for investments from Herries, Farquhar and Co., 4 pieces, dated 22- 24 July 1884.
- Letter from Herries, Farquhar and Co., concerning an investment made on behalf of the Society and the consolidation certificate, 2 pieces, dated 18 May 1885.
- Letters from Edward Colebrooke (Sir Thomas Edward Colebrooke, 4th Baronet) to T.W. Rhys Davids, Secretary, Royal Asiatic Society, concerning potential investment and the powers of the trustees. Three letters, dated 6, 8, 18th April [1888].
- Letter from Herries, Farquhar and Co., to enclose the banker's note for the sale of New South Wales Stock. The note and share certificate are with the letter, 3 pieces, dated 27-29 May 1889.
Three items concerned with investment of the Society's assets in 1949. These are:
- Letter from J.H. Lindsay, Honorary Treasurer, Royal Asiatic Society, to The Manager, Lloyds Bank Limited, St James's Street, London, to inform the manager of the resolutions passed at the General Meeting of the Society on 13 May 1943 concerning the sale and re-investment of the Society's securities, 1 piece, typed, dated 17 May 1948.
- Letter from J.H. Lindsay, Honorary Treasurer, Royal Asiatic Society, to Mrs M Davies, Secretary, Royal Asiatic Society, to return bank papers, and send an attempt at a circular embodying Richard Winstedt's (President) ideas, 1 piece, handwritten, dated 31 May 1948.
- 'Opinion' by W. A. Hammerton to express his opinion on the objection raised by the Inspector of Taxes, 2 pieces, typed, undated.
Correspondence with and concerning interactions with the Charity Commissions. These are:
- Correspondence regarding registration under the Charities Act 1960, 2 letters, 1 memorandum concerning submission of statements of account, and 3 associated forms, dated 7 September - 22 October 1962.
- Correspondence regarding streamlining funds and rental of rooms, 6 letters, dated 28 April 1969 - 22 April 1970.
- Charity Commission Sealed Direction to enable the Society to appoint an investment manager, printed material, dated 30 June 1994, and 21 allied file notes or letters, dated 26 February 1993 - 6 November 1995.
- Letter from D.W. MacDowall, President, Royal Asiatic Society, to Ms Helen Johnson, Charity Commission, regarding insurance of collections, 21 November 1996.
Correspondence concerning grants from Governments of Hong Kong, Federated Malay States and the Straits Settlements. These are:
- Correspondence with the Under Secretary of State, Colonial Office, London, concerning the Government of Hong Kong's grant to the Society, 22 pieces, typed and handwritten, dated 26 February 1927 - 1 September 1936.
- Correspondence concerning the grant to the Society from the Federated Malay States, 24 pieces, typed and handwritten, dated 11 February 1936 - 17 November 1936.
- Correspondence with the Colonial Office concerning grants from Hong Kong, Federated Malay States and the Straits Settlements, 17 pieces, typed and handwritten, dated 12 October 1942 - 4 February 1956.
- Letter from the Secretary for Recreation and Culture, Government Secretariat, Hong Kong, to the Royal Asiatic Society to inform the Society of the discontinuation of its donation to the Society, 1 piece, typed, dated 23 August 1990.
Correspondence concerning Grants and Donations to the Society from other Institutions. These are:
- A note from the Rockefeller Foundation to the Royal Asiatic Society to send a bank draft as their one-half of the grant for the preparation of a book on Robert de Nobili by Vincent Cronin, 1 piece, typed, dated 7 June 1957.
- A draft letter to the Drapers Company to ask for support for the Royal Asiatic Society, 3 pieces, typed, dated 4 September 1957.
- A letter from Edwin Clarke, Assistant Scientific Secretary, The Wellcome Trust, to Sir Gerard Clauson, Royal Asiatic Society, to inform of the provision of a grant to the Society to list all the extant medical and scientific manuscripts in Arabic in the United Kingdom,1 piece, typed with handwritten annotations, dated 4 November 1959.
- British Academy General Grant: Correspondence concerning an annual grant from the British Academy to assist in financing the Royal Asiatic Society, 43 pieces, handwritten and typed, dated 16 July 1942 - January 1965.
- British Academy Journal Grant: Correspondence concerning an annual grant from Nuffield Fund administered by the British Academy to assist in financing the Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, 54 pieces, typed and handwritten, dated 17 December 1954 - 7 December 1964.
- Neil Kreitman Foundation: Correspondence concerning a grant from the Neil Kreitman Foundation to support the Society, 6 pieces, typed and handwritten, dated 18 February 1993 - 29 April 1993.
- Letter from Camilla Larsen, Executive Officer, Royal Asiatic Society to Ms Crowley, Mercer's Charitable Foundation, to acknowledge receipt of a grant for the computerised cataloguing project of the Society, 1 piece, typed, dated 30 October 2009.
Documents and correspondence concerned with donations and bequests made to the Royal Asiatic Society
Sem títuloList of 'Voluntary Donations to the Funds of the Royal Asiatic Society since its institution'. Handwritten list of donors, amount of donation and year of receipt from 1823 - 1851.
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