{"id":3938,"date":"2024-04-29T13:47:53","date_gmt":"2024-04-29T13:47:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/speccoll\/?p=3938"},"modified":"2025-12-17T15:29:59","modified_gmt":"2025-12-17T15:29:59","slug":"gertrude-bells-hints-to-travellers-scientific-and-general","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/speccoll\/2024\/04\/29\/gertrude-bells-hints-to-travellers-scientific-and-general\/","title":{"rendered":"Gertrude Bell’s Hints to Travellers: Scientific and General"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Gertrude Bell (1868-1926) was a writer, archaeologist, and colonial diplomat who played a significant role in the creation of the Kingdom of Iraq in 1921. Although Bell spent the latter years of her life living in Baghdad, her archive and book collection were donated to our library by her family following her death in 1926. Bell\u2019s archive remains one of our most heavily used collections and has recently been made available on our dedicated Gertrude Bell website<\/a> after being digitised and catalogued to current archival standards. Bell\u2019s book collection<\/a>, which comprises her working and personal library, complements the archive by contextualising her activities and providing an insight into the way she worked and learned throughout her life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although Bell\u2019s own output is impressive (the archive contains over 12,000 unique items), her book collection reflects her diverse interests and shows us the ways in which the work of others supported and inspired her travels. Additionally, Bell\u2019s books are often annotated with notes which document the learning process whilst also serving as reminders of key information she regarded as important. The selection of books in her library and the copy specific information they contain can be interpreted by researchers looking to further understand the work and methods of this unique historical figure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One item within Bell\u2019s book collection which illustrates the way she used and interacted with her books is her copy of Hints to Travellers: Scientific and General<\/em><\/a> (B910.2 REE) published in 1906 by the Royal Geographical Society. Hints to Travellers <\/em>was originally created by the Society for, <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

\u201ca person who, proposing to explore a wild country, asks what astronomical and other scientific outfit he ought to take with him, and what observations he may attempt with a prospect of obtaining accurate results\u201d. <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

The guide included sections on a wide variety of topics including climate, geography, anthropology, and astronomical observations as well as comprehensive lists of pieces of equipment a traveller would need to take with them on their journey.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Front
Bell\u2019s copy of the ninth edition of Hints to Travellers: Scientific and General<\/em> (Vol. 1) [Gertrude Bell Collection, B910.2 REE]<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Bell owned a copy of the ninth edition of the Guide (above), which was published in 1906 and split into two volumes. The first volume, which focused on \u201cSurveying and practical astronomy\u201d, is particularly special as Bell has filled many of the pages with handwritten notes and diagrams. These notes document both her learning process and her use of the methods explained within the book.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Pages<\/a>
Pages from Hints to Travellers: Scientific and General<\/em> (Vol. 1) showing much of the blank space in the first section of the book filled with Bell\u2019s handwritten notes and diagrams [Gertrude Bell Collection, B910.2 REE]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Bell has also included the latitude and longitude of locations in Lebanon (\u201cBeirut\u201d) and Iraq (\u201cBaghdad Citadel\u201d), which she has presumably been able to calculate using the guide.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Pages<\/a>
Pages from Hints to Travellers: Scientific and General<\/em> (Vol. 1) [Gertrude Bell Collection, B910.2 REE]<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Many of the books within Bell\u2019s library, such as language and grammar books as well as works focusing on history and culture within the Middle East, provide a unique insight into the ways in which Bell prepared herself for her travels across the region. They also indicate the voracious appetite she had for reading and learning, and the wide variety of subjects in which she took an interest.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"2<\/a>
Pages from Hints to Travellers: Scientific and General<\/em> (Vol. 1) [Gertrude Bell Collection, B910.2 REE]<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Bell\u2019s copy of Hints to Travellers: Scientific and General<\/em> can be requested here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Gertrude Bell Collection can be viewed online using Library Search.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Gertrude Bell (1868-1926) was a writer, archaeologist, and colonial diplomat who played a significant role in the creation of the Kingdom of Iraq in 1921. Although Bell spent the latter years of her life living in Baghdad, her archive and … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5894,"featured_media":3939,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[852,24],"tags":[129,817,218,815,816,34,650],"class_list":["post-3938","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-special-for-everyone","category-treasure-of-the-month","tag-archive","tag-diagrams","tag-gertrude-bell","tag-marginalia","tag-notes","tag-rare-books","tag-travel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/speccoll\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3938","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/speccoll\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/speccoll\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/speccoll\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5894"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/speccoll\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3938"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/speccoll\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3938\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3945,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/speccoll\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3938\/revisions\/3945"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/speccoll\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3939"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/speccoll\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3938"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/speccoll\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3938"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ncl.ac.uk\/speccoll\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3938"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}