JOURNAL 



ASIATIC SOCIETY. 



Part II.— PHYSICAL SCIENCE. 



No. TIL— 1865. 



Notes on Central Asia. — By M. Semenof. (Communicated by Lieut. - 

 Colonel J. T. Walker, R. E.) 



[Received 15th April, 1865.] 



[In the year 1856, M. Semenof was deputed by the Imperial 

 Geographical Society of Russia, on a mission of exploration into 

 Central Asia. — On his return to St. Petersbm-g, he published a trans- 

 lation of Ritter's " Erdkunde von Asien " into Russian, and gave in 

 the preface to the 2nd volume, an account of the results of his own 

 explorations. — The following notes are taken from this preface. At 

 my request they were translated from Russian into English by Mr. R. 

 Michel, F. R. Gr. S., whose name will be familiar to all who are ac- 

 quainted with the numerous papers on the geography and trade of 

 Central Asia, which have appeared of late years in the Journal of the 

 Royal G-eographical Society of London. J. T. W.] 



The second volume of the Russian translation of Ritter's "Asia" 

 comprises a description of the North Western portion of the tableland 

 of Asia, i. e. that extensive region which stretches between the Altai 

 and the Celestial mountains, from the Eastern extremity of the latter 

 at Hami (Komul), to the Watershed of lake Balkhash. 



The range of country under consideration embraces the whole of 

 the extinct kingdom of Djungaria, or the Chinese Province of Tian- 

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