Talking about this rare work, Ali Mohajerani, librarian at foreign language department of Astan Quds Razavi’s central library said: “Narrative of a Journey through the Province of Khorasan and on the N. W. frontier of Afghanistan has was written by Colonel Charles Metcalfe MacGregor in 1875 and is a notable work in the field of travel writing and military analyses”.
Mohajerani added: “This travel book which was firstly published in 1879 gives a detailed and exact narration over MacGregor’s trip to Khorasan and Afghanistan’s borders”.
“McGregor, who was a prominent officer in the British Army and one of the pioneers in the field of military intelligence, made this trip with the aim of getting to know about strategic regions in Iran and Afghanistan and investigating social as well as military conditions of these territories,” he stated.
Mohajerani who was speaking on the occasion of Book and Book Reading Week added that “The print copy of this two-volume book has been translated into Persian; however, there are a few editions of original English version of this book in the world. One copy of this original version is carefully kept at the exquisite section of the central library of Astan Quds Razavi”.
According to him, Yale University and Public Library of New York are among rare places in the world keeping this rare book.
Elsewhere he pointed to the contents of this book, he said they are related to the era when Khorasan and borders of Afghanistan were of high strategic importance to the colonial powers especially Britain and Russia.
Mohajerani went on to say: “In addition to covering military and strategic issues, McGregor has also carefully described life conditions of ordinary people, cultures, and customs in different regions. By detailing the daily life of people in Khorasan and different ethnicities, he presents a vivid and documented picture of the social situation in these areas”.
“This book is also a valuable source for researchers who are interested in history of Iran, Afghanistan and Central Asia due to its author's comprehensive information and strategic analysis. The travelogue is still used as a main source when studying military and geopolitical history of these regions” he further noted.
Putting an end to his remarks, Mohajerani said: “The author presents his experiences of traveling to Khorasan and Turkmenistan including a trip to Mashhad in the ninth chapter”.