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CHAPTER XXIX.

FATHER TIEFFENTHALER, FATHER GAU BI L AND

ANQUETIL DU PERRON.

JOSEPH TIEFFENTHALER was a Jesuit Father, born at Botzen about 1715.1 In 1743 he arrived in Goa, and lived in India for 42 years. In 1759 he entered into correspondence with the famous scholar ANQUETIL DU PERRON, who was then at Surat. Tieffenthaler occupied himself with studies on natural history, religion and geography, and in 1773 his geographical material first came to Europe. In

I 7 7 6 his three maps arrived through the assistance of M. BERTIN, in the hands of Anquetil du Perron who was then in Paris, where he published an article on these maps, which was reprinted in 1777.2 In 1784 Anquetil du Perron published, on one sheet, the maps of Tieffenthaler under the title: Carte générale du cours du Gange et du Gagra. The parts of this map which are of special interest to us have a short time ago been re-published by M. CHARLES EUDES BONIN, 3 who says that the original map or maps were probably drawn by a Hindu and presented to one of the great Moguls, probably Akbar (1556-1605). These maps or copies of them came into the hands of Tieffenthaler and afterwards to Anquetil du Perron.

In the German edition of Tieffenthaler's, Anquetil du Perron's and RENNELL's work,4 the editor, BERNOULLI, says, that Tieffenthaler's work to a great extent is taken from Ain-i-Akbari, to which important work Professor Sprengel had directed the attention of the German scholars. 5 Tieffenthaler's work is therefore

I He wrote his name Tieffentaller, but I use the spelling of his commentators.

2 Journal des sçavans, 1777, Janvier. Ed. de Hollande.

3 Une ancienne carte des sources du Gange. Annales de Géographie N:o 112, XXe année, 15 Juillet 191 I, p. 338 et seq., and in his book: Les Royaumes des Neiges, Paris, 191 I, p. 256— 279: Les sources du Gange. BONIN gives a very able discussion on TIEFFENTHALER'S standpoint.

4 Des Pater Joseph Tieffenthaler's historish-geographische Beschreibung von Hindustan, etc., Berlin and Gotha 1785, Vol. I, Preface, p. X.

5 BERNOULLI continues: »Ausser diesem hat der Pater Tieffenthaler viel andere der bewährtesten Geographen und Geschichtschreiber von Indien benutzt und seine eigenen auf Reisen gesammelten Bemerkungen in seine Auszüge eingewebt. Aus dem allen ist nun ein für Europäische Erdbeschreiber und Geschichtforscher höchst brauchbares und classisches Werk entstanden, das aber an sich, ich leugne dies nicht, noch eine ziemlich rudis et indigesta moles ist.»