Royal Commonwealth Society : Samuel Pasfield Oliver: sketches and watercolours of Cyprus

Royal Commonwealth Society

<p style='text-align: justify;'>Comprises six pencil and watercolour sketches drawn by Oliver at the time of the British occupation of Cyprus. At the time, Oliver was a special artist and correspondent of the Illustrated London News based in Cyprus and Syria. Versions of the sketches were published in the Illustrated London News.</p><p style='text-align: justify;'>Samuel Pasfield Oliver (1838-1907) was born in Ongar, Essex. Educated at Eton College and the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich. With a commission in the Royal Artillery, he served in Canton, and travelled to Peking [Beijing] and Japan, and Mauritius, also travelling at this time to Madagascar. He was later involved in Captain Pym's expedition to Central America in 1867 and studied archaeological sites in Asia Minor, Greece, and Sardinia. He briefly served as special artist and correspondent of the Illustrated London News in Cyprus and Syria but her returned to England following ill-health to pursue a writing career. His published works included 'Madagascar and the Malagasy' (1866), 'Nuragghi Sardi, and other Non-Historic Stone Structures of the Mediterranean' (1875) and 'The Second Afghan War, 1878–80' (1908). He died at his home in Worthing in July 1907. Source: Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.</p><p style='text-align: justify;'>The sketches are part of the Cobham Collection <a target='_blank' class='externalLink' href='https://archivesearch.lib.cam.ac.uk/repositories/2/resources/96'>(RCS/Cobham)</a>, the personal library of Claude Delaval Cobham (1842-1915), Commissioner of the District of Larnaca from 1879-1907. The Cobham collection contains over 1000 books and pamphlets on or relating to Cyprus, primarily to its history and languages. About a third of the books are in Greek (Romaic), and others are in Greek (Hellenic), Latin, Turkish, Armenian and numerous modern European languages. It also has a considerable number of religious works dealing with the Greek and Latin churches and including the lives of Cypriot saints and Offices or Service books. It includes the first book printed in Cyprus in 1778. In addition, it contains over 30 maps and 18 etchings and a collection of poetry devoted to special occasions on the island. The collection was presented to the Royal Colonial Institute in 1913.</p><p style='text-align: justify;'>The digitisation of these sketches was made possible by the generosity of Dr Robert Merrillees.</p>