Przhevalʹskiĭ, Nikolaĭ Mikhaĭlovich, 1839-1888

Nikolay Mikhaylovich Przhevalsky (or Prjevalsky; 12 April [O.S. 31 March] 1839 – 1 November [O.S. 20 October] 1888) was a Russian spy and a renowned explorer of Central and East Asia. Although he never reached his ultimate goal, the city of Lhasa in Tibet, he still travelled through regions then unknown to Westerners, such as northern Tibet (modern Tibet Autonomous Region), Amdo (now Qinghai) and Dzungaria (now northern Xinjiang). He contributed substantially to European knowledge of Central Asian geography. Przhevalsky described several species previously unknown to European science, such as Przewalski's horse, Przewalski's gazelle, and the wild Bactrian camel, all of which are now endangered. He was also a mentor of the explorer Pyotr Kozlov.