The Fire Ox and Other Years is an extraordinary memoir of travel, exploration, and cross-cultural encounters by Charles Suydam Cutting, a distinguished naturalist and adventurer of the early twentieth century. Spanning more than fifteen years of expeditions, this richly illustrated volume recounts journeys to some of the most remote and then-inaccessible regions of Asia and beyond—Chinese Turkestan, Tibet, Assam, Nepal, and Upper Burma—as well as less-traveled parts of Africa and the Pacific.

A field collector for the American Museum of Natural History, the Field Museum, and the British Museum, Cutting’s expeditions were scientific as much as they were personal quests for understanding unfamiliar worlds. He provides a rare, first-hand account of encounters with lamas and princes, jungle trackers and Himalayan tribespeople, including his groundbreaking visit to Lhasa, granted by the 13th Dalai Lama—a remarkable achievement for any Westerner of the time.

Titled after the Fire Ox year in the Tibetan calendar, the book interweaves moments from various Chinese zodiac years, each marking a pivotal expedition. Through vivid photographs, detailed maps, and thoughtful narrative, Cutting documents the landscapes, wildlife, and cultures he encountered with both precision and a quiet reverence. The Fire Ox and Other Years is not just a chronicle of travel, but a window into a world on the cusp of change, recorded by a man with both curiosity and respect for the lands he visited.

1940, Charles Scribner's Sons, New York, no dust jacket, illustrations throughout, ex-libris, good condition.