# Bengal

Byte sized library of rare books

SNS | July 31, 2015 11:54 pm

A free digitised library containing rare books on history and world literature will be inaugurated at Sabarna Sangrahasala in Barisha on 8 August. A rare book entitled Diary of William Hedges written in 1682 will be available in the library. Hedges had differences with Job Charnock. Livingston: Lost and Found by Morton Stanley and published in 1873 will also be available.

One can get a chance to read The Indian Mutiny of 1857 by Col G B Mallison. The book was written in 1891. A very rare book entitled The Early Annals of the English in Bengal by C R Willson has been accommodated in the library.

An English translation of Si Yu Ki by Xuanzang, the famous Buddihist scholar and traveller, by Samuel Bill, which was published in 1884, has found its place in the library.

Debarshi Roychowdhury, curator and librarian, said the digitised version of the books are brought from the universities of Oxford, Toronto, Michigan, Stanford and Osmania. The library has been developed by Sabarna Roychowdhury Parivar Parishad.

There are around 500 rare books on Kolkata and Bengal, history of India and world, autobiographies and Mughal period. There will be a section on Bangladesh. He said the students of history would benefit immensely, librarian Roychowdhury.

All the documents relating to Kolkata’s birthday have been made available. It may be recalled that The Statesman first published the deed signed by Sir Charles Eyre and the descendents of Sabarna Roychowdhury in 1698, four years after Charnock’s death in its edition on 23 April 1998. After this, Charnock is no longer considered to be the founder of Kolkata.

Some of the other important books that will have berths in the library included The Story of the Nation: British India by R V Frazer, published in 1896.

A rare book on Kolkata entitled A New Account of the East Indies by Captain Alexander Hamilton, published in 1727, will be available too.