- An updated edition of the 2001 publication, edited by Kenneth Cox, based on Kingdon Ward's original expedition and text
- Thoroughly illustrates one of the world's least explored areas
- "The publishers are to be congratulated for their exemplary production." Curtis's Botanical Magazine
- "...this will go down as one of the greats of plant exploration literature..." Roy Lancaster
- "The value of the text is increased tenfold by the generous illustrations. So reluctant was I to finish the book that I rationed myself to a few pages a night; I can offer no greater praise than this." Roy Lancaster, Gardens Illustrated
- "The appeal of the book lies as much in Ward's prose as in the thrilling story of exploration and discovery. He was a fine writer and it is a cause for celebration that one of his best books is now again available after a gap of 70 years." Ursula Buchan,The Independent
- "What is quite extraordinary about this region is the way in which landscape, plants, people and the sense of the religious fuse... It is hard to imagine that anyone could be disappointed in this book." Malcolm MacGregor, Journal of the Scottish Rock Garden Club
- "This new edition of the Tsangpo Gorges, where the original black and white photographs are supplemented by stunning color plates... it's not cheap, but it's worth it. A strong buy." (Featured in Best reads of 2001 ) Dermot Kehoe, The Irish Garden
- "There's no doubt that such an elegant and exciting book richly deserves a new readership... the story behind its reissue is no less gripping that Kingdon Ward's own narrative." Ambra Edwards, Gardening Which
Little explored and virtually inaccessible, the Tsangpo Gorges in south-east Tibet is the world's deepest. Through it twists the Yarlong Tsangpo, Tibet's great river, emerging from below on the plains of India. This is the story of its exploration and the rich plant and animal life found there.
Riddle of the Tsangpo Gorges, first published in 1926, is the fascinating account of plant-hunter and explorer Frank Kingdon Ward's most important expedition. Kenneth Cox, Kenneth Storm, Jr. and Ian Baker have spent the last fifteen years retracing the route of the 1924-25 expedition and have managed to reach further into this magical and only partly explored land.
The book contains the original Kingdon Ward text and extensive additional material including a history of the expedition, geography and religious significance of the area. There are more than 250 color photographs with detailed captions on the plants, most of which are described by Kingdon Ward in the original text.
This updated edition features new information that covers the Tsangpo Gorges in the 21st century. Kenneth Cox and Kenneth Storm, Jr., provide first-person accounts of expeditions to the area, and a photographic essay documents for the first time in a book the new Hidden Falls located in the section of the gorges left unexplored by Frank Kingdon Ward and Lord Cawdor in 1924.
Kenneth Cox, from a family of writers, plant hunters, nurserymen and world experts on rhododendrons, runs the family horticultural business in Scotland. He has travelled extensively and led two expeditions to Yunnan, China, and five to Tibet in search of plants.
Kenneth R. Storm, Jr. has explored Mexican gorges, the Colorado Plateau, the Green and Colorado Rivers, the western Himalayan region of Ladakh and has made five journeys to the Tsangpo Gorges.
Ian Baker has written extensively on the art and culture of Tibet and the Himalayas. He has made eight expeditions into the region of the Tsangpo Gorges following pilgrimage routes described in ancient Tibetan texts.
Previously Announced.
