Large-scale serial records of tolls or trade movements, centralized on one place, are useful for tracing structural economic changes over time. Yet the sheer mass of data may make using them a daunting task. The shipping of the Dutch East India Company (VOC) between Europe and Asia has been put together in Dutch Asiatic Shipping (DAS) (J. R. Bruijn, F. S. Gaastra, and I. Schffer, Dutch-Asiatic Shipping in the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries, 3 vols. The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, 1979–1987). These are printed volumes, although they are now also available online (www.inghist.nl/Onderzoek/Projecten/DAS/). However, the shipping of the VOC in tropical waters, the so-called intra-Asian trade, was still missing. Information for this aspect of the company is more difficult to collect than for the Europe-Asia run, because it is scattered over several archival records of the VOC. Fortunately, Robert Parthesius has met the challenge and put together a database of ships, including types, rating according to size and movements within Asia.

Parthesius divides the VOC's operations in Asia into seven regions—namely, from west to east the Arabian Sea, the Bay of Bengal, Sumatra, the Straits of Malacca, the Java Sea, the Spice Islands route, and the Far East route. Areas are then selected within the regions, according to the main ports of call. Throughout the book, the analysis is based on this grid of regions subdivided in areas, and by times spans, with the period 1595–1610 followed by decades up to 1660. It is interesting that in the period 1595–1660 Parthesius found 1,058 vessels, which is 529 more than recorded for this period in DAS. This means that these vessels were captured, bought, or built in Asia (p. 13). The database contains 30,000 records of voyages between 700 individual destinations, of which 11,700 voyages made between 520 destinations in 35 areas have been analyzed. Local shipping within an area is excluded (pp. 26–27). The findings are profusely illustrated in clear colored maps, bar diagrams, and tables. It seems that in the research relevant printed or archival sources have been used, however, one must remember that the basis of information is a compilation and not a contemporary record of all ships' movements, as the DAS is for the Europe-Asia voyages. Consequently, all numbers in this study refer to voyages found in this research. There may possibly be other voyages in other sources.

Following on the introduction (chapter 1) and an explanation of the methodology of the database (chapter 2) the book is split up in two parts: the development of the VOC shipping network in Asia, and the shipping and ships in numbers. Part 1, Chapter 3 starts with a survey of expansion up to 1660. Chapters 4, 5, and 6 deal with technical and logistic matters. Shipping routes and especially types of vessels are discussed in detail. Parthesius describes the vessels used in Asia in detail dividing them into ten sizes, or rates, from the big homeward-bounder of on average 160 feet to small boats taken in parts from The Netherlands to Asia to be assembled on the spot. The most remarkable findings are that 30 to 40 homeward-bounders were in service in the intra-Asian trade in the period 1630–1660 and that vessels less than 170 last (an old Dutch unit of weight, as well as of volume) of about 125 cubic feet made up at least 50 percent of the Asian fleet between 1595 and 1660 (p. 90). The importance of the equipment of ships, maintenance, stowing, and the proper use of ballast are clearly shown. In chapter 7, all threads are knit together. It is proved that it was crucial to synchronize the arrivals of vessels from all parts of Asia at the VOC's headquarter at Batavia with the departure of the homebound fleet.

In the comparable shorter second part of the book, the numbers of the database are summarized and analyzed in chapter 8. In tables, the arrivals and the connected cargo volumes in the regions separately specified per area, are listed over 1595–1610 and in ten-year periods up to 1660. Next, the arrivals in the regions are compared. These findings are then displayed via maps. The general conclusion is that during the period of 1620–1630 there has been a steep growth in the frequency of shipping by 82 percent and in the volume by 48 percent. Between 1630–1640 and 1640–1650 the growth is steady with respectively 23 percent and 19 percent in frequency of arrivals and 17 percent and 47 percent in volume. In the period 1650–1660 there is a small decline of 2 percent in frequency and 8 percent in volume (p. 125). Already in 1640–1650 the volume of shipping to the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea together is more important than to the Spice Islands or Taiwan (p. 141). In chapter 9, full advantage is drawn of the categorization of vessels in rates. The composition of the fleet defined is analyzed, which reveals that the type of vessels used were adapted to the physical and military conditions, to the nature of the cargo, and to the logistics of trade. An appendix listing all ships Parthesius traced is a useful addition.

By entering all the data about ship movements in a database, Parthesius and his assistants have done a wonderful service for historians and made it clear that the VOC adapted its techniques and strategy to local circumstances. One hopes that the database will soon be available (as promised) in an electronic format. Only then will researchers be able to exploit it fully. In the book, the data are analyzed in a slightly rigid format of regions split up in areas, and of periods. Unfortunately, in the table of contents, a list of maps, figures, and tables is missing and the lining of the paper cover is fairly poor.