A BOOK containing early photographs of Singapore fetched a hefty
price of S$91,000 (43,000 pounds) in Britain.
One of the drawings in the unbound album, Views of the China
Seas and Macao taken during Capt. D. Ross' Surveys by M. Houghton,
features a drawing of Singapore from the 17th century.
The Telegraph of London reported that the unnamed seller took
the book to auction house Netherhampton Salerooms after rescuing it
from her grandmother's bonfire.
The book was originally expected to fetch no more than 3,000
pounds until books consultant Bill Hoade properly researched its
significance and noticed one of the 40 drawings in the book was of
Singapore from 1819.
He said: 'This drawing is one of the earliest drawings of
Singapore. The more I found out the history of the drawings, the
more interesting the book became. By the time I had done all the
research I could, I knew it would fetch upwards of 20,000
pounds.'
An anonymous London bookseller bought the book at the
auction.