Race to the Snow: Photography and the Exploration of Dutch New Guinea, 1907 to 1936 [Paperback]

Chris Ballard (Author, Editor), Steven Vink (Author, Editor), Anton Ploeg (Author, Editor), Koninklijk Instituut Voor De Tropen (Corporate Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2002

This is the first collection of photographs -- many never previously published -- depicting the Dutch and British expeditions to South New Guinea between 1907 and 1936. When a seventeenth century report of snow-covered mountains in the interior of the tropical island of New Guinea was confirmed, the Dutch and British mounted expeditions in a race to reach them first. The authors chronicle the successes, heartbreaks and tragedies of the expeditions. The photographs depict the mountains, expedition members, and the Papuan people they encountered. It took until 1936 for a team led by Anton Colijn to finally make a successful ascent of Mt Carstensz, the highest peak in New Guinea. The encounters between the expeditions and the Papuan people living in the mountains were the first of their kind. The photographs were taken by the expeditions as a form of evidence of these first contacts. More recently, as the photographs have become available to these same Papuan communities, the range of interpretations of their meaning has expanded. For communities such as the Amungme, these photographs provide an important window into their past, and a new means of rethinking current issues. The photographs, together with Papuan and European narratives about the events of the expeditions, represent a history that is very much alive and working in the service of the present.

Product Details

• Paperback: 96 pages
• Publisher: Koninklijk Instituut Voor De Tropen (April 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 9068325116
• ISBN-13: 978-9068325119
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 8.7 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,063,221 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #38 in Books > Travel > Australia & South Pacific > Papua New Guinea

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting, January 21, 2004

By 

Laszlo Wagner (Hungary) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Race to the Snow: Photography and the Exploration of Dutch New Guinea, 1907 to 1936 (Paperback)

This book contains short accounts of expeditions to the western highlands of West Papua in the early 20th century, accompanied by 50 black and white photographs and a few maps.
The photos are perhaps the major interest.