European Universal Travelers in Western Mongolia in the Second Half of the 19th – Beginning of the 20th Century: Historical and Cultural Notes

Abstract

The article enquires into the activities of British, French, and German travelers who visited Western Mongolia in the second half of the 19th and the early 20th century. European expeditions at the time, such as missions of Bouillane de Lacoste or Douglas Carruthers, were often initiated by scientific organizations and carried out by military officers, diplomats, or missioners. Their correspondence and other archival data help us understand how expedition teams were organized and how rapport was established with the natives as well as Russian scholars and consular authorities. Unlike the Russian expedition teams visiting Mongolia, the European ones were usually small. Research tasks were of complex description and were in line with the geopolitical ambitions of the Great Game era. Archaeological sites and objects were randomly noted and described along the way, although rarely supplied with proper geographical coordinates, and there was a general lack of clear travel itineraries. Still, the efforts of these “universal travelers” were instrumental in uncovering the culture of Western Mongolia for broader European audiences and set a certain stage for studying the history of the region.