Asian Civilizations Museum, Singapore
Friday Evening Lecture Series, 26 September 2014, 7 to 8:30 pm
Speaker: Ian Burnet – Author
This lecture is based on the speaker’s book ‘East Indies (2013). It follows trade winds and trade routes to the ports across the East Indies and the Orient. It documents the struggles for trade supremacy between the Portuguese Casa da India, the Dutch East Indies Company, and the English East India Company.
The histories of port cities will be discussed, beginning in Malacca, which was one of the world’s largest trading ports in the 16th century, then moving to Batavia – one the world’s largest trading ports in the following two centuries. And finally, to Singapore and Hong Kong, two of the world’s largest trading ports in the 19th century.
About the speaker
Ian Burnet has spent more than 30 years living, working, and travelling in the Indonesian archipelago in his career as a petroleum geologist/geophysicist. He first came in 1968, and was fascinated by the rich history of the archipelago, the spices that grew there, and particularly the roles played by the colonial powers in the history of the islands. His first book, Spice Islands (2011), tells the story of the romance and adventure of the spice trade from Eastern Indonesia over a period of 2000 years. He is currently preparing another book on the history of the Indonesian archipelago.
This lecture is free and co-organised with Friends of the Museums (Singapore). Seats are available on a first-come, first-served basis. No registration is required.
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