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Ruete, Emily, Princess of Oman and Zanzibar.
Mémoires d'une Princesse Arabe. Traduit de l'allemand par L. Lindsay. Paris, Dujarric & Cie., 1905.
Small 8vo. (6), 330 pp. Contemporary half calf with marbled boards and giltstamped spine. Marbled endpapers. First French edition of this fascinating biography of the Princess of Oman and Zanzibar, who married a German and later fled to Aden and Hamburg after becoming pregnant by him. The work is considered the first known autobiography of an Arab woman. It presents a remarkable perspective on the daily life of the Sultan in the mid and late 19th century, viewed from the eyes of an well-educated woman - subjects such as "La situation de la femme en Orient" ("A Woman's Position in the East", ch. XVI), courtship ("La mariage arabe", "Arab Matchmaking", ch. XVII), harems and polygamy, and even slavery are discussed at length (the Princess appearing rather favourably disposed to the latter!). As a later Christian convert, she remains fiercely proud of her homeland: "But it is just in Arabia, and with the Arab people, that the true Mahometan spirit, upon which the views of other Eastern nations are founded, has maintained itself most pure" (transl.). Her view of Muslim life represents the level-headed appreciation of a native of both East and West: "I have seen too many of such unhappy cases [of Christian marriage] to make me believe that Christian wedlock stands on a higher level or renders people much happier than the Mahometan [...] it is quite a fallacy to think that woman in the East is placed socially on a lower level than man. The legitimate wife - the purchased Sarari are of course to be excepted - stands in all respects on a par with her husband, and she always retains her rank, and all rights and titles emanating from it". Emily (Sayyida Salme) and her husband lived comfortably in Germany until the latter's death in 1870, upon which Emily was prompted to write the present work partly to alleviate her financial concerns. - Evenly browned throughout. Rare. OCLC 38270253. Cf. Hiler 763 (English ed., New York, 1907).
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Rumi (Jalal al-Din Muhammad Balkhi).
Kolliyât-e Sams-e Tabrizi (The Collected Poems of the Sun of Täbris). Lucknow, [1885 CE] = 1302 H.
Folio. Vol. 2 (of 2) only. 519-1036 pp., lithographed throughout. Contemp. calf, sparsely gilt. Original pink wrappers bound within. Important and scarce Lucknow edition of the famous masterpiece of Persian mysticism. Edited by Seyyed Jalal oddin Saheb andarâbî Bagdâdi. - Wants vol. 1. Very slight browning to interior; binding somewhat rubbed; giltstamping mostly oxydized. KNLL XIV, 465.
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Rycaut, Paul.
The History of the Turkish Empire from the year 1623 to the year 1677. Containing the reigns of the last three emperours, viz. Sultan Morat or Amurat IV. Sultan Ibrahim, and Sultan Mahomet IV his Son, the XIII. emperour now reigning. London, printed by J. M. for John Starkey, (1679-)1680.
Folio (204 x 324 mm). 2 parts in 1 vol. (6), 89, (1) pp. 336, (16) pp. With 2 engr. portrait frontispieces and 3 full-page engravings in the text (2 portraits and "a Turkish pageant"); separate half-title: "The Memoirs of Paul Rycaut, Esq., Containing the History of the Turks from the year 1660 to the year 1678". Contemporary full calf with giltstamped red spine label. First edition. "[D]edicated to the king. This was a continuation of Knolles's 'Turkish History', to the sixth edition of which (3 vols. 1687-1700) it was printed as a supplement. The whole work was abridged, with some addenda by Savage", in 1701" (DNB 50, p. 39). Sir Paul Rycaut (1629-1700) was first employed as private secretary to the British ambassador to Constantinople and later became British Consul and factor at Smyrna. - The portraits show the author and the Ottoman Sultans Murad IV, Ibrahim, Mehmed IV. as well as a splendidly decorated ornate palm, as high as a mast - a gift for the circumcision of the Prince. - Some brownstaining; hinges and edge defects professionally repaired. Bookplate of John Evans (d. 1724), Lord Bishop of Bangor and sometime adversary to Jonathan Swift. Atabey 1074. Aboussouan 808. Wing R2406. Not in Blackmer.
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Rycaut, Paul.
The Present State of the Ottoman Empire. Containing the maxims of the Turkish politie, the most material points of the Mahometan religion [...]. London, for John Starkey & Henry Browne, 1668.
Folio (198 x 310 mm). (8), 218 pp. With 19 text engravings and two plates (29 costume illustrations in all); wants the frontispiece. Later half calf on five raised bands, gilt, with giltstamped spine label. Marbled endpapers. Edges sprinkled in red. Second printed edition of Sir Paul Rycaut‘s famous Turkish chronicle (the first available), drawn from various authentic sources and from the author‘s own observations. "His most important work [...] presents an animated and, on the whole, faithful picture of Turkish manners" (DNB). "Provides an account of the society and political system of the Ottoman Empire with unprecedented thoroughness" (cf. Osterhammel, Die Entzauberung Asiens, 32). "An extremely important and influential work, which provides the fullest account of Ottoman affairs during the 17th century" (Blackmer). The 1666 first edition, which this replaces, was almost entirely destroyed by the Great Fire of London. The attractive engravings depict dignitaries and persons of various ranks in their costumes, also including the illustration of a turban. The loss of the frontispiece is to some degree extenuated by the fact that it merely showed a repeat of the engraving on fol. B2v (Sultan Mehmed IV on his throne). - Corners bumped. Some foxing, but still a good, prettily bound copy. Provenance: bookplate of Stefanos Karatheodoris, a Greek Phanariote diplomat in Ottoman service and father of the mathematician Constantin Carathéodory. Blackmer 1463. Wing R2413. Weber II, 326. Lipperheide Lb 19 (= 1408), note. Howgego R92. Cf. Atabey 1067 (third ed. only).
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Saadi.
Bustan and Gulistan. Persia, ca. 1770 / 18th century.
4to. 116 ff. With 26 illuminated miniatures. Native paper heavily gilt, illuminated in a fine calligraphic hand, with attractive borders. Decorated cloth. A highly interesting Persian manuscript in Nastaliq style containing the two major works of the celebrated Persian poet (1184-1291). "Gulistan" ("The Rose Garden", 1258) and "Bustan" ("The Orchard", 1257) are both filled with semi-autobiographical stories, philosophical meditations, pieces of practical wisdom, and humorous anecdotes and observations, depicted in 26 miniatures in this manuscript. - Binding rubbed and chafed, spine damaged. Some of the miniatures slightly rubbed.
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Saadi.
Rosarium politicum, sive amoenum sortis humanae theatrum. De Persico in Latinum versun [!], & notis illustratum, a Georgio Gentio. Amsterdam, Gerbrand Schagen, 1688.
12mo. (22), 372 pp. With engr. t.p. and 12 engr. plates. Contemp. calf with giltstamped red spine label. Third and final impression of this edition, comprising the Latin part of the first complete translation of Saadi's "Rose Garden" into any western language. Text taken from the Persian-Latin edition of 1651; the annotations are in Latin translation only. The engraved title page still bears the first impression's 1680 date, the charming illustrations were first issued in 1655. - Some browning, otherwise a very good copy. Cf. Brunet V, 24. Schwab 1010.
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Sachau, Eduard.
Muhammedanisches Recht nach schafiitischer Lehre. Lehrbücher des Seminars für Orientalische Sprachen zu Berlin Bd. XVII. Stuttgart, W. Spemann, 1897.
8vo. XXIX, (1), 879, (1), 28, (3) pp. Publisher's temporary wrappers with series title stamped to upper cover. Detailed study of the Shafi'i school of fiqh named after Abu 'Abdullah Muhammad ibn Idris, Imam al-Shafi'i, or 'Shaykh al-Islam'. Al-Shafi‘i developed the science of fiqh unifying 'revealed sources' - the Quran and hadith - with human reasoning to provide a basis in law. With this systematization of shari'a he provided a legacy of unity for all Muslims and forestalled the development of independent, regionally based legal systems. The four Sunni legals schools or madhhabs- keep their traditions within the framework that Shafi'i established. The Shafi'i school is followed in many different places in the Islamic world, including Indonesia, Malaysia, Egypt, Somalia, and Yemen. - Includes the Arabic text of 'Abû-Shugâ. - An uncut, untrimmed copy.
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Samad Khan Momtaz os-Saltaneh, Iranian diplomat (1869-1965).
Autograph Quotation signed ("Prince Smad"). In French. No place, July 1931.
Folio. 1 page. On uncut wove paper, bearing the Schoellers-Parole blind embossed seal, margins uncut. The original autograph contribution of Samad Khan to the Committee of the World League for Peace (Ligue Mondiale pour la Paix), a remarkable organization formed in 1925 with close ties to the League of Nations. The Committee itself was composed of such notaries as Queen Elizabeth of Belgium, King Carol II of Romania, John D Rockefeller, Marie Curie, and Albert Einstein, who personally gathered the present manuscripts over the course of seven years (1925-32). Among the public figures who contributed to the project were numerous dignitaries from the newly-created League of Nations' member states. "War, terrible in all times, has become vain and profitless today, and is equally disastrous for all involved, as even the counquering countries, as well as neutral countries, without exception, can no longer escape the suffering engendered by that calamity! The solidarity between nations has thus become fatally clear. Because of this, peace is no longer simply an ideal, it is becoming a necessity and an obligation. Even the most sceptical among us must finally give pause and reflect. Yet, how rarely are the means we choose to attain this much desired goal the most practical ones! Despite the fact that it is easy to understand that warfare and arms are merely effects, and that it is illogical to wish to avoid them while their causes persist! Can we extinguish an electric light without turning off the switch? Peace can only be seriously envisaged if it is also on a solid base, honest and practical, cemented by the work of the League of Nations, itself equipped with the effective means of intervention! Security for all, men of state and the people, should be the objective, the effect of which will be an inevitable disarmament and sincerity between nations. General fear must make way for a general trust and for faith in the respect of rights and in the future of humanity. Our civilisation owes this to itself, lest it be overcome. [Signed] Prince Smad, former Extraordinary Ambassador to London, former Persian Minister in Holland, and in France, former Premier Delegate of Persia to the Conference in The Hague and the Conference on the Revision of the Geneva Convention, and Permanent Court of Arbitration". Prince Samad was Ambassador to London, Holland, France. He personally owned the Embassy in Paris, which he made his home. Briefly Prime Minister of Persia in 1918. Pax Mundi. Livre d'or de la paix. Enquete universelle de la Ligue mondiale pour la paix sous le haut patronage de son comite d'honneur avec l'approbation de la Societe des nations, du Bureau international du travail et de la Cour permanente de justice internationale. Geneve, Societe paxunis, 1932.
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Sarre, Friedrich / Trenkwald, Hermann.
Alt-Orientalische Teppiche. Herausgegeben vom österreichischen Museum für Kunst und Industrie. Vienna & Leipzig, Anton Schroll & Karl W. Hiersemann, 1926.
Imperial folio (600 x 450 mm). 2 vols. 21, 43 pp. With 120 plates (67 of which in full colour). Original half calf with marbled boards and gilt title to spine. First edition. "A milestone publication based on the earlier pioneer works published by the Museum [...] Documentation and technical notes on each carpet. Magnificent illustrations" (Arntzen/Rainwater). Includes a bibliography on oriental carpets and additional examples of oriental rugmaking previously unknown and not published in Martin's 1908 monograph. - A nicely bound copy, interior clean and spotless throughout. Arntzen/Rainwater P629. Enay/Azadi 517.
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[Saudi Arabia - Camels].
Collection of 17 photographs of camels. Saudi Arabia, 1960s.
Spiral-bound album with 6 large and 11 smaller photographs (1 image included in a duplicate print). The present album of black-and-white photographs, all taken by G. F. Larsen, later Vice President of General Services at Aramco, shows camels in the Arabian desert and the locals whom they accompany. - Occasional slight staining; well-preserved in general.
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Saunders, John.
John Sturges in Turkish costume with turban and embroidered coat. Peterborough, 1739.
Pastel on paper, laid onto canvas stretched over (original?) wooden board (305 x 410 mm). This pastel was drawn by the prolific itinerant portraitist John Saunders (1682-c. 1758) at Peterborough in September 1739. Saunders is recorded as active in East Anglia, the Midlands and elsewhere in the mid-18th century (cf. Neil Jeffares, "John Saunders", Dictionary of Pastellists Before 1800 [London, 2006]). The sitter, John Sturges in Turkish costume, wearing a white turban with blue feather and golden embroidered coat, was probably drawn from a mezzotint after John Vanderbank (1694-1739) by Francis Kyte (d. 1744), published in 1733. The pastel is of interest as an example of mid-18th century depiction of Turkish costume. Saunders, perhaps in an attempt to add extra exoticism to Mr. Sturges, has included a curling moustache that is not present in the mezzotint. Sturges, an architect based in the East Midlands, is known to have collaborated with William Talman (1650-1719) at Chatsworth and Milton House in Northamptonshire. The fact that this pastel was produced in Peterborough may indicate some connection with descendants of Sturges, assuming that he himself was dead by 1739. The Fitzwilliam Museum holds a drawing of John Sturges by John Vanderbank (wash on paper, PD.1-1992). - Verso with label bearing 19th century manuscript note concerning the autograph pencil inscription by Saunders top right: “Saunders pinxit after Mr. J[oh]n Vanderbank Peterborough Sept. anno d. 1739”. Two negligible scratches to surface, otherwise good, offered without frame.
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Saunier, Jean de.
La parfaite connoissance des chevaux, leur anatomie, leurs bonnes et mauvaises qualitez, leurs maladies et les remedes qui y conviennent. The Hague, printed for the author and sold by Adrien Moetjens, 1734.
Folio (365 x 245 mm). Title printed in red and black with engraved vignette by D. Coster. Engraved frontispiece portrait of Gaspard de Saunier by and after Coster and 61 plates by and after François Morellon La Cave, François van Bleyswyck, and Ernst Ludwig. Early 20th century brown morocco, spine with raised bands gilt in compartments, gilt centrepieces, red edges, marbled endpapers. First edition. A superb example of this richly illustrated work of equine anatomy and hippiatrics, written by the inspector of the King of France's High Stable and edited by his son, who was riding-master at the Academy of the University of Leiden. It was a popular work which was later translated into German (Glogau, 1767) and into English as "Guide to the Perfect Knowledge of Horses" (London, 1769). - First leaves a little browned due to to paper, otherwise an excellent copy. Huth 66. Mennessier de la Lance 490. Cohen/R. 940. Nissen, ZBI 3592. Brunet V, 149. Graesse VI, 276.
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Sauvaire, H[enry] / J. de Rey-Pailhade.
Sur une mère d'astrolabe Arabe du XIIIe siècle (609 de l'Hégire) portant un calendrier perpétuel avec correspondance musulmane et chretienne. (Extrait du Journal Asiatique). Paris, Imprimerie Nationale, 1893.
8vo. 125, (1) pp., final blank f. With 2 double plates and several tables, diagrams and illustrations in the text. Original printed wrappers. First separate edition of this rare study in Islamic astronomy, describing a copper astrolabe made in Seville in 609 A.H. (1212/13 A.D.) by Muhammad ibn Fattouh al-Khamairy. - Occasional brownstaining, still a very good, clean copy, uncut and untrimmed. Creswell 604. OCLC 17716842.
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[Siege of Vienna].
Relation veritable du siège de Vienne. Lyon, Thomas Amaulry, 1684.
12mo. (8), 159 pp. With folding engraved portrait and folding engr. plan. Contemporary calf. First edition of this account of the 1683 Turkish siege of Vienna. The portrait shows Count Starhemberg. Owner's stamp to title page. Includes an additional engraving, captioned by a contemporary hand: "Mort du Grand Vizir, étranglé par l’ordre de Mehemed 4 pour n’avez pas pris Vienne". Old cancelled stamps. A clean, well-preserved copy, formerly in the Ottoman collection of the Swiss industrialist Herry W. Schaefer. Sturminger 2449. Kábdebo II, 182 ("1683" in error, not seen or located). Cf. Graesse VI/1, 76 (Brussels, 1684).
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Schmidt, F. von.
König Wilhelm von Württemberg in seinen ländlichen Beschäftigungen. Mit Illustrationen in Farblithographie und Holzschnitt n. Julius Schnorr und dem Tiermaler Anton Braith. Stuttgart, Ebner & Seubert, 1865.
Folio (306 x 430 mm). (2), lithogr. title page, 40 pp. With 13 colour lithogr. plates and 12 text vignettes (1 in colour). Original blinstamped calf with 8 brass bosses and a central portrait medallion showing Wilhelm of Württemberg. All edges gilt. With fine illustrations of the King's famous studs as well as of the "Arabian stallion Bairakhtar" (p. 9) etc. W. R. Brown states that the Württemberg Royal stud was run from 1852 to 1871 by Baron Julius von Hügel, who purchased valuable stock from the Egyptian stud of Abbas Pasha, "thus raising it to the highest standard of excellence" (The Horse of the Desert, p. 161/166). - Some foxing throughout. Heyd 2773.
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Schnaebeli, H.
Album des Trabrenn-Sport. Berlin, H. Schnaebeli & Co, 1879.
Oblong 8vo (330 x 265 mm). 16 original albumen prints, c. 205 x 150 mm. Mounted on original boards. Original richly decorated cloth, on front cover: "Album des Trabrenn-Sport. H. Schnaebeli & Co. Hof-Photographen u. Kunstverlag. Berlin Unter den Linden 30". Fine album of original albumen prints depicting trotting. All horses and jockeys are identified in handwriting on the opposite page. 1 Cremien. 2. Lump. schw. H. v. Lump a. d. Nelly Parker. Züchter u. Bes. Gestüt Mariahall. 3. Mazeppa. Fahrer J. W. Raymer. 4. anon. 5. France's Alexander. Schwarzer Hengst v. Ben Patschen a. d. Jenny Martin. Besitzer Gestüt Mariahall. 6. Lynwood. Schimmel-Hengst v. Clinker a. d. Belton Maid. Besitzer. Berliner Trabrenn-Verein. 7. Sunol. Braune Stute v. Electioneer a. d. Wazana. Besitzer Rob. Bronner. 8. Djelowaja. Schimmel-Stute v. Atlasnuyi a. d. Delni. Besitzer und Fahrer Herr G. Barthels. 9. Blue belle. Fuchs-Stute v. Blue Bull. Besitzer: Gestüt Mariahall. Trainer u. Fahrer L. Raymer. 10. Polly. Braune Stute v. Hamdallah a. d. Belle. Besitzer: Herr Ehrich. Trainer u. Fahrer Joe Raymer. 11. Tiger. F. H. gez. in Russland 1873 v. Stroining a. d. Saszita. Besitzer: Albas Singer in Wien. 12. Lumpazius. br. H. v. Lump a. d. Addre E. C. Züchter u. Bes. Gestüt Mariahall. 13. Sametz. 14. Maud. S. Fuchs-Stute v. Harlod a. d. Miss Russell. 15. Ledenaja. Fahrer J. W. Raymer. 16. Jersey Thorne brauner Hengst v. Thorndale a. d. Martha, Besitzer Mr. Wilson. - Most photographs signed in the plate: H. Schnaebeli; one dated 1879. Very early example of an album illustrating horses, horsemanship and trotting. Extremely scarce: we were unable to trace another copy in any public library according to OCLC-Worldcat and KVK; not in JAP or ABPC. - Binding a bit discoloured, otherwise very well preserved. Boards show some browning and foxing; albumen prints in very good condition.
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Sellheim, Rudolf.
Die klassisch-arabischen Sprichwörtersammlungen insbesondere die des Abu 'Ubaid. s'-Gravenhage, Mouton & Co., 1954.
8vo. VI, (2), 164 pp. Original printed wrappers. Scholarly work on Abu 'Ubaid's collection of proverbs (matal) known as "Kitab al-Amtal", assembled in the 8th/9th century A.D., and other, similar anthologies of Arabic adages. - A very good copy.
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Servan de Sugny, Édouard.
La Muse Ottomane ou Chefs-d'Oeuvre de la Poésie Turque. Traduits pour la première fois en vers francais avec un précis de l'histoire de la poésie chez les Turcs, etc. Seconde édition, revue et corrigée. Paris & Geneva, Cherbuliez, 1855.
8vo. XXXVII, 394 pp. (Bound with) II: The same. Étude orientale ou trois odes de Hafiz et une élégie de Saadi poetes persans. Paris & Geneva, Duprat & Cherbuliez, 1852. 32 pp. Contemp. red half calf. I: Early anthology of 44 Ottoman writers. An excellent translation, dedicated to the King of Prussia. Contains a wealth of information for the oriental scholar, especially by virtue of the learned introduction and the copious appendix with biographical notes on all poets here presented. - With the author's three-line autograph inscription to Ferdinand Perrier on the endpaper; Perrier's drystamp on title page. - Bound with the first French edition of these three odes of Hafez, also profusely annotated. - Somewhat browned; occasional insignificant foxing. Saba 826. Nawabi VII, p. 990.
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Seydi Ali Reis.
Mirat ül-memalik. Asar-i eslafdan. Dersaadet (Istanbul), Ikdam Matbaasi, [1895 CE] = 1313 H.
8vo. 99, (1) pp. Red half morocco with blindstamped cloth boards and giltstamped spine title in Ottoman Turkish. First and only edition in the Ottoman world. Sidi Ali Reis was an Ottoman admiral sent by Suleiman the Magnificent to counter Portuguese piracy and attacks on Muslim pilgrim ships in the Indian Ocean, Arabian Sea, Red Sea and Arabian Gulf. He was shipwrecked in India and travelled to the Muslim states of South Asia, Afghanistan, central Asia, Iran, and the Middle East before returning to the Ottoman Empire. His travels are recounted in his present "Mirat ül-Memalik" ("The Mirror of Countries"), first published in 1557, one of the earliest travel books of Turkish literature and written in the now extinct Chagatai language. Rare: OCLC lists 3 copies only internationally (Leiden, Bamberg, Munich). OCLC 632504491, 65818716.
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Shah Wali Khan, The 'Liberator of Kabul', Afghan prince and statesman, brother of King Nader.
Autograph quotation signed ("Shah Wali"). In Arabic and French. Paris, 6 July 1931.
Folio. 1 page. On uncut wove paper, bearing the Schoellers-Parole blind embossed seal, margins uncut. The original autograph contribution of Shah Wali to the Committee of the World League for Peace (Ligue Mondiale pour la Paix), a remarkable organization formed in 1925 with close ties to the League of Nations. The Committee itself was composed of such notaries as Queen Elizabeth of Belgium, King Carol II of Romania, John D Rockefeller, Marie Curie, and Albert Einstein, who personally gathered the present manuscripts over the course of seven years (1925-32). Among the public figures who contributed to the project were dignitaries from the newly-created League of Nations' member states. The inscription is in Arabic with a typset translation below: "War is a terrible catastrophe, which all peoples of all epochs have always abhorred. [Signed] Prince Shah Wali, Minister of Afghanistan in Paris". - Shah Wali, the brother of Mohammad Nader (ruler of Afghanistan 1929-33), was posted in Europe as a foreign minister from 1929 until 1945. Pax Mundi. Livre d'or de la paix. Enquete universelle de la Ligue mondiale pour la paix sous le haut patronage de son comite d'honneur avec l'approbation de la Societe des nations, du Bureau international du travail et de la Cour permanente de justice internationale. Geneve, Societe paxunis, 1932.
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Shurreef, Jaffur (Ja'far Sharif).
Qanoon-e-Islam, or the Customs of the Moosulmans of India; comprising a full and exact account of their various rites and ceremonies, from the moment of birth till the hour of death. London, Parbury, Allen, and Co., 1832.
Large 8vo. XXVIII, 436, CXXVIII pp. With lithogr. frontispiece and 18 lithogr. plates. Half calf with red morocco label to spine. Marbled endpapers. First edition of this very rare study of Indian Muslim customs, manners, social habits and religious rites. At the request of the British-Indian surgeon Gerhard Andreas Herklots (1790-1834), the work was composed in his native Dakhini by the "liberal-minded" Ja'far Sharif and then translated by the editor. Subsequently published under title "Islam in India, or, The Qanun-i-Islam; the customs of the Musalmans of India". - Extremities very slightly rubbed and bumped. Occasional brownstaining, otherwise in good condition. Provenance: engr. bookplate of George R. Elliot on front pastedown; later in the library of the Indian-born surgeon Charles Marsh Beadnell (1872-1947; his ownership on flyleaf). OCLC 5152176.
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Si Kaddour Benghabrit, Moroccan statesman, founder of the Muslim Instite in Paris (1868-1954).
Autograph Quotation signed ("Benghabrit"). In French, signatures in French and Arabic. Paris., 22 May 1929.
Folio. 1 page. On uncut wove paper, bearing the Schoellers-Parole blind embossed seal, margins uncut. The original autograph contribution of Si Kaddour Benghabrit to the Committee of the World League for Peace (Ligue Mondiale pour la Paix), a remarkable organization formed in 1925 with close ties to the League of Nations. The Committee itself was composed of such notaries as Queen Elizabeth of Belgium, King Carol II of Romania, John D Rockefeller, Marie Curie, and Albert Einstein, who personally gathered the present manuscripts over the course of seven years (1925-32). Among the public figures who contributed to the project were dignitaries from the newly-created League of Nations' member states. "Rebellion sleeps in the heart of man, may he be cursed who awakens it'. Thus spoke our Prophet. This is still the living doctrine of modern Islam. How could it not prefer the pure and simple joys of peace to the torments and dark nights of war! [Signed] Benghabrit". Si Khaddour Benghabrit rose to prominence under the French regime in Morocco . He is also remebered for his courage in saving the lives of the many Jews during the Second World War by disguising them as Muslim members of his Paris mosque - somewhere between 500 and 1600 people were saved from deportation in this way, and the Medal of Justice has been awarded to the descendants of Benghabrit by the Yad Vashem Memorial. Pax Mundi. Livre d'or de la paix. Enquete universelle de la Ligue mondiale pour la paix sous le haut patronage de son comite d'honneur avec l'approbation de la Societe des nations, du Bureau international du travail et de la Cour permanente de justice internationale. Geneve, Societe paxunis, 1932.
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Sibahi, Aziz.
Uqud min tarikh al-Hizb al-Shuyu 'i al-'Iraqi. Damascus & Baghdad, Mansurat al-Taqafa al-Gadida / Dar al-Ruwad li-al-Tiba`a wa-al-Nasr, 2005.
372, (8) pp. Original wrappers. 4to. Decades of the history of the Iraqi Communist Party. - A good copy. OCLC 775696684.
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Sidi Ahmed Pasha, Ruler of Tunisia (1862-1942).
Autograph quotation signed. In Arabic. Paris, 14 July 1930.
Folio. 1 page. On uncut wove paper, bearing the Schoellers-Parole blind embossed seal, margins uncut. The original autograph contribution of Sidi Ahmed Pasha to the Committee of the World League for Peace (Ligue Mondiale pour la Paix), a remarkable organization formed in 1925 with close ties to the League of Nations. The Committee itself was composed of such notaries as Queen Elizabeth of Belgium, King Carol II of Romania, John D Rockefeller, Marie Curie, and Albert Einstein, who personally gathered the present manuscripts over the course of seven years (1925-32). Among the public figures who contributed to the project were dignitaries from the newly-created League of Nations' member states. "Praise be to God! Be friends and love one another, for you are all brothers who worship God. Peace is the best policy and God leads the righteous to that which is in the best interest of nations and peoples [Signed] Sidi Ahmed Pasha". Sidi Ahmed Pasha, better know as Ahmed II Bey, ruled Tunisia from 1929 until his death in 1942 as a member of the Husseinite dynasty. Pax Mundi. Livre d'or de la paix. Enquete universelle de la Ligue mondiale pour la paix sous le haut patronage de son comite d'honneur avec l'approbation de la Societe des nations, du Bureau international du travail et de la Cour permanente de justice internationale. Geneve, Societe paxunis, 1932.
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[Siege of Vienna].
Vienna assediata del Turco, 1683. Vienna, 1683.
Folio (280 x 190 mm). 70 ff. Italian ink ms. on paper, with a rare engraved folding map of the siege of Vienna by Johann van Ghelen (1684). 19th-century Italian blue sponged marbled boards. A remarkable, apparently unpublished manuscript chronicle of the 1683 Siege of Vienna by the Turks, which marked the turning point in the 300-year struggle between the forces of the Central European kingdoms and the Ottoman Empire and cemented the Habsburgs power. The manuscript begins with a historical account and background, touching on the problems of religious liberty, the Hungarian resentment against German domination, and other problems which led to the interference of the Turks and their aggression against the West. The chronicle continues in great detail, almost in the form of a contemporary diary, providing a day-by-day account of the unfolding events from 1 August 1683 until the end of the siege when the defeat of the Turkish army at Vienna became the turning point in the long East-West struggle. The story gives, among other things, detailed figures of the strength of the Christian and Turkish forces, listing all regiments with their commanders and the number of troops. The pagination, which despite being a self-contained account begins on 131, and the legible uncorrected script, indicate this was likely prepared for publication in a larger work. Includes (before f. 160) a rare engraved folding map of the siege of Vienna from Johann van Ghelen's "Relazione compendiosa e veridica del famoso assedio dell'imperiale città di Vienna, attaccata da Turchi li 14. di luglio, e liberata li 12. di settembre 1683".
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Sionita, Gabriel.
Arabia, seu Arabum vicinarumque gentium Orientalium leges, ritus, sacri et profani mores, instituta et historia: accedunt praeterea varia per Arabiam itinera, in quibus multa notatu digna enarrantur [...]. Amsterdam, Willem & Jan Blaeu, 1635.
12mo. 247, (1) pp. With engr., illustrated title page. Contemp. vellum. Second edition of this collection; a reprint of the 1633 Jansson edition. Contains: 1. Sionita & Hesronita. De nonnullis orientalibus urbium. "This important work contains early descriptions of Baghdad, Bokhara, Damascus, Medina, Mecca, and Aleppo" (Blackmer). 2. "De moribus atque institutis Turcarum" by the French diplomat C. Richier. 3. W. Drechsler's "Historia Arabum". - Slightly browned throughout. Gay 3452 (year mis-stated as "1653"). OCLC 69059126. Cf. Macro, Bibliography of the Arabian Peninsula, 2084. Hage Chahine 4533. Blackmer 1544 (note). Schnurrer 188 (first ed. 1633).
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Skinner, [Thomas].
Adventures During a Journey Overland to India, by Way of Egypt, Syria, and the Holy Land. London, Richard Bentley, 1836.
8vo. 2 vols. XI, (1), 324 pp. XI, (1), 291, (1) pp. With 2 engr. frontispieces (portrait and view of the Lake of Tiberias). Contemporary calf with triple giltstamped cover fillets and blindstamped ornamental borders, leading edges gilt, inner dentelle gilt, spines rebacked to style with giltstamped label. Marbled endpapers; all edges marbled. First edition. - An account of a journey made in 1833 through Egypt, the Holy Land, Syria, Mesopotamia (Baghdad, Babylon and Basrah), Persia, down the Arabian Gulf (stopping at Muscat, "the hottest place on earth") and thence to India. - Corners bumped; frontispieces foxed. Attractively bound copy; armorial bookplates ("Gadsden", motto "decrevi") to pastedowns; contemporary ownership "C. J. Wilton" to flyleaf. Blackmer 1547. Ibrahim-Hilmy II, 237. Röhricht 1808. OCLC 4255403. Cf. Atabey 1142 (1837 second ed.).
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[Slave Trade].
Further papers relating to the Slave Trade: viz. Return to an Address of The House of Commons to His Majesty, dated the 20th June 1823, for Copies or Extracts of the Correspondence from the Month of March 1822 [...]. [London], The House of Commons, 1823.
Folio. 24, (2) pp. With a map within the text. Sewn. Correspondence relative to the execution of several treaties respecting the slave trade and to the repression of the illicit traffic in slaves, including extracts of letters from Governor Sir R. T. Farquhar to the Earl Bathurst regarding the seizure of "Arab vessels laden with slaves" on the "coasts of Arabia" (p. 22) and the compliance of the Imaum of Muscat with the treaty between the British Government and the Imaum, with a copy of that treaty inserted. - Paginated "251-275" by a contemporary hand. Well-preserved.
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[Slave Trade].
Slave Trade. No. 4 (1877). Correspondence Respecting the Seizure of Slaves on board the "Rokeby" and "Koina" by her Majesty's Ship "Rifleman". London, Harrison and Sons, 1877.
Folio (210 x 320 mm). 16 pp. Cloth-covered spine. Rare documentary material on the interception of the ships and the seizure of slaves on board. British-operated ships continuously carried hajjis between Jeddah and ports in the Gulf, and the steamers were often used for the transport of slaves, sometimes with the cognizance of the captain. "The system of issuing tickets by the agents of British vessels at Jeddah without any name being inserted thereon, and the absence of passenger lists, no doubt render it extremely difficeult for the masters of ships to ascertain whether any of their passengers are slaves; and [...] it is one which cannot but place the gravest obstacles in our way in the suppression of the Slave Trade [...] The majority of the inhabitants of the Hedjaz and Yemen, from highest to the lowest, are interested in the Slave Trade, domestic slaves being a matter of necessity, servants not being procurable, what few there are bad [...] The Mahommedans consider the institution of slavery to be one of mutual benefit, and the slaves are geenrally the best dressed and best fed members of the household [...] It is very difficult to make any Mahommedan consider that slavery is a crime. He usually contends that the negro is recued from barbarism, and is taught the Mahommedan religion, and on that ground he defends the system; and indeed, he regards himself somewhat in the light of a missionary, and thinks he is extending his faith. The question is, therefore, beset with some difficulty [...]". - Occasional edge repairs. OCLC 872281698 (Internet resource only).
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[Speer, Daniel].
Zwey nachdänkliche Traum-Gesichte, von dess Türcken Untergang. Zweifels ohn von göttlicher Direction. Herauss gelassen von mehrmals zugetroffen erfahrnem Designante Somniatore. [Ulm, Matthäus Wagner, 1684].
4to. (2), "31" (= 29), (1) pp. With engraved frontispiece (an allegory of the 1683 Ottoman defeat) and headpieces. Side-stitched in modern wrappers, green edges. Rare pamphlet describing two dreams supposedly predicting the fall of the Ottoman Empire. It was written by the German composer and novelist Daniel Speer (1636-1707) under the pseudonym "Designante Somniatore" and opens with some remarks on prophetic dreams with reference to the Old Testament. Speer's pamphlet, written immediately after the 1683 Battle of Vienna, expresses a deep-seated fear of the Ottoman Empire, which, thrusting into the heart of Europe, seemed a serious threat to Christianity. With manuscript annotation on the back of the frontispiece by "Joannes Jacobus Hausmohr", 1685, and contemporary ownership of the Salzburg Theological Seminary ("Ex libris Seminarij Salisb.") on title page. In good condition. VD 17, 3:310364C. Not in Atabey or Blackmer.
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Sprenger, Aloys, orientalist scholar (1813-1893).
Autograph letter signed offering a translation from the Arabic of El Suyuti's History of the Khalifs. London, between 1836 and 1843.
Two and a half handwritten sides on 2 leaves. Signed "your most obedient humble servant Dr. Sprenger", and concerning various Arabic manuscripts which Sprenger is considering translating. The letter dates from Sprenger's relatively brief time in London (1836-43), and thus predates any of his published works. He decides that Ibn Kourdadbeh's 'Oriental Geography' (the earliest surviving Arabic book on administrative geography) is unsuitable as he can only locate one MS copy. Instead, he offers to produce a translation of Suyuti's famous 'History of the Caliphs', which he notes has been accounted the best of such histories by the Arab encylopaedist Haji Khalfa. Sprenger transcribes several names from English into Arabic for the benefit of his correspondent. - A well-preserved and early letter reflecting Sprenger's outstanding command of Arabic sources. The Austrian-born Sprenger became one of the most noted orientalists of the 19th century, producing a comprehensive 'Life of Mohammad from Original Sources' in 1851.
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(Stampini, Ettore [ed.]).
Feriis saecularibus R. Athenaei Taurinensis. A.D. VI Kal. Nov. an. MDCCCCVI. [Torino, Vigliardi-Paravia], 1906.
Folio (262 x 358 mm). 35, (1) pp. With 9 plates. Original wrappers printed in red, stored loosely within original dedicatory giltstamped cloth portfolio with white moirée endpapers. Handsome facsimile publication produced on the occasion of the centenary of the University of Turin (27 October 1906), under the editorship of the professor of philosophy Ettore Stampini (1855-1930) for the Academic Council. Dedication copy for Sultan Abdülhamid II (1842-1918), the 99th caliph of Islam and the 34th sultan of the Ottoman Empire. The Sultan was to be deposed in 1909; but two years later, Italy and the Ottoman Empire would go to war over Libya. - Rather strongly browned throughout, as usual; still a good copy with fine provenance. OCLC 16164614.
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Stiffe, Arthur W.
[Trading Centres of the Persian Gulf]. [London, The Royal Geographical Society], 1899-1900.
8vo. pp. 293-298 and 211-216 of the Geographical Journal of 1899 and 1900, respectively. With an illustration of the Mausolia near Bandar Abbas. Offprints in modern wrappers. Parts 5 and 6 of Stiffe's account of former and ancient trading centres of the Arabian Gulf, treating Kung (pp. 294-297, 1899) and Bandar 'Abbas (211-215, 1900), both on the Persian coast. Well-preserved. Cf. Macro, Bibliography of the Arabian Peninsula, 2135 (vols IV and VII).
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Sudi, Süleyman.
Defter-i muktesid. [Istanbul], Mahmud Bey Matbaasi, [1889-1890].
3 vols. in 1. (2), 142, (4), 144, (6), 208, (2) pp. Original half leather. 4to. First edition of the "Notebook of the Economist", a still much-quoted Turkish publication on the fiscal structure of the Ottoman Empire. - Rubbed at spine and corners. Slight brownstaining, otherwise in good condition. OCLC 40382408.
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Tamisier, Maurice.
Voyage en Arabie. Séjour dans le Hedjaz. Campagne d'Assir. Paris, Louis Desessart, 1840.
8vo. 2 pts. in 1 vol. (4), 399, (1) pp. (4), 402 pp. With folding engr. map. Contemporary marbled half calf with giltstamped title to spine. First edition; rare. - The work of a sympathetic observer who made an extraordinary journey. Tamisier accompanied the Egyptian forces to Arabia in 1833/34 as chief of the Medical Corps. Bearded and in Arab dress, he visited areas never seen by a westerner before. The author describes Jeddah and the pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina from different parts of the Muslim world, as well as Ta’if, the Asir region, the Bedouins of Outeiba and Khamis Moushait, etc. Tamisier was offered the post of secretary to the chief medical officer of the punitive expedition against the Wahhabis. He focuses on the country he saw and the people he encountered on his journey from Jeddah into the Nejd and south to the borders of Yemen, taking particular interest in the medical conditions of the populace. - Binding slightly rubbed. The Burrell copy fetched £2,000 at Sotheby's in 1999 (lot 801). Macro, Bibliography of the Arabian Peninsula, 2163. Weber IV, 279. Gay 3608. NYPL Arabia coll. 172. OCLC 2569222. Not in Atabey or Blackmer.
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Tavernier, Jean-Baptiste.
Collections of travels through Turky into Persia, and the East-Indies. Giving an account of the present state of those countries. London, Moses Pitt, 1684.
Folio (204 x 309 mm). 6 parts in one vol. (24), 264 pp. (2), 214 pp. (6), 113, (1) pp. 154, (2) pp. 87, (1) pp. 66 pp. With 37 engr. plates (many folding). Period-style full panelled calf, elaborately gilt-decorated spine on raised bands with red morocco spine label. Marbled endpapers. The first collected edition in English, translated by John Phillips and Henry Oldenburg: an account of Tavernier's travels to Turkey, Persia, India, and Japan (with large map of Japan), containing reports about the Japanese persecution of the Christians and the Dutch settlements in the Far East. Book Two, chapter Nine of the Persian Travels is of particular interest, as it contains an account of Tavernier's voyage through the Arabian Gulf, mentioning Bahrain, Bandar Abbas, Qeshm, and Hormuz and making observations on the pearl-fishing, people and navigation of the Gulf. There is also a bird's-eye map of the Strait of Hormuz showing the Musandam Peninsula (peppered with palm trees and captioned "A promontorie of Arabia the happey"), Hormuz, Larak, and Qeshm island, as well as Bandar Abbas and Bandar Kong on the Persian side. Intruguingly, this engraved map also includes depth soundings throughout the Gulf, making it useful as an early "Persian Gulf Pilot". A separate, illustrated chapter discusses extensively the invaluable pearl in the collection of the Imam of Muscat. Another illustrated chapter discusses "The Money of Arabia". In general, the plates depict festivals, processions, costumes, views, and images of the Eastern flora and fauna as well as coins and gems. - Title-page rehinged, with ownership of Thomas Hardy, dated 1698. Repaired tear to first leaf of contents. Faint marginal dampstain along lower edge of first several leaves; occasional browning, final leaves of text cleaned with some minor marginal restoration, but well-preserved on the whole. Handsome period-style calf-gilt binding fine. Blackmer 1632. Wing T251A, T252, T253. Campbell (Japan) 28. Cox I, 275f. OCLC 6071990. Cf. Wilson 223. Howgego T14. Severin 104-113. Not in Atabey or Weber.
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Eastern Telegraph Company.
Wooden map page turner. London, Waterlow & Sons, Ltd., [1894].
Varnished wood. 335 x 35 mm. Maps printed on both sides, with calendar for 1894 in gold on black on both sides of the finial. "This desk accessory, designed for use as a map page turner or letter opener/paper knife, was a promotional item for The Eastern Telegraph Company Limited and The Eastern Extension Telegraph Company Limited. Based in London, these companies were part of a network creating communication routes around the UK and across the Atlantic in the late 1800s ... The blade of this wooden object is decorated with varnished sections of a world map, including Australia, with red lines indicating international land and sea telegraph lines" (Description of a similar example in the Queensland Museum, Registration no. H47766). - In very good condition.
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Thou, Jacques-Auguste de.
Hieracosophiou, sive de re accipitraria libri III. Paris, Robert Estienne for Mamert Patisson, 1587.
8vo. 126 pp., final blank f. With printer's device on t. p. Half vellum (c. 1900) with marbled boards and giltstamped spine title. Edges sprinkled in red. Third edition of the famous "Hieracosophion", the second to contain the third book. - "Celebrated poem on falconry" (Schwerdt), written in Latin hexameters by Jacques-Auguste de Thou (1553-1617), a distinguished and highly erudite French nobleman. "His poem was reprinted by N. Rigault in 'Rei Accipitrariae Scriptores' in 1612 and also translated into Italian [...] De Thou succeeded his father, Christophe, as president of parliament; he was privy councillor to Henry III, and also to Henry IV of France, and keeper of his library. He was not thirty when he composed the elegant verses on hawking, which were probably inspired by the experience he gained of this noble sport during his sojourns at foreign courts" (ibid.). On p. 7, we find "an important note on the various kinds of hawks used for Falconry, with the Latin and French names for them" (Harting). - Very minor brownstaining; traces of an old bookseller's label on endpapers. A good copy. Adams T 658. BM-STC French 225. Barbier IV, 1270. Harting 306. Souhart 461. Schwerdt II, 261. Thiébaud 897. Graesse VI/2, 147. OCLC 69042873. Cf. Brunet V, 840 (first ed. 1584). Not in Renouard or Schreiber.
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Tostlöwe (Tostleben), Christoph.
Eigentliches Zeugniß der Warheit in der Demmerung, oder Ein guter Anfang zu der wahren Roß-Artzney. Mehrentheils auß eigener Erfahrung und Judicio, in Einfalt seines Hertzen auß deßen Schatz nach seinen Erkäntniß herfür gebracht, eines sich selber zu einen Memorial, allermeist- aber für seine Kinder zur guten Nachricht auffgezeichnet hinterlaßen von den Schmiede zu Böhlitz Christoff Tostlöwen Anno 1698. Böhlitz bei Leipzig, 1698.
4to. Manuscript copy, dated 1712. (74), 506, (4) pp., with two contemporary woodcuts of horses, removed from an illustrated Bible, mounted on verso of final leaf. Modern brown calf with giltstamped spine label. Remarkable, unpublished hippiatric manuscript, composed in the late 17th century by the Böhlitz blacksmith Christoph Tostlöwe (d. 1699 in Böhlitz-Gundorf near Leipzig) and here presented in a near-contemporary copy prepared only 14 years later by an unknown hand (the initial pages of the present ms. are dated to the early months of the year 1712; the completion of the copy probably required the better part of that year). The ms. begins with a lengthy preface in which the self-confident craftsman justifies his work, demonstrates his familiarity with the Dutch physicians Cornelius Bontekoe and Steven Blankaart, and asserts his competence in the medical field. This is followed by Tostlöwe's wide-ranging treatise on the treatment of the horse, including sections on stomach ailments, enemas, gall disorders, phthisis, afflictons of the eyes, as well as the proper care of the hoof, how to properly cast a horse on its side and tie it down, etc. The end is brought up by a three-page index; the final page shows two woodcuts of horses in battle and flight, removed from a contemporary illustrated Bible. - Tostlöwe was heavily influenced by the Pietist theologians Spener and Francke and was well-connected with the Leipzig Pietist movement. For his heretical views and disputatious activities he was arrested and questioned by the Merseburg consistorium in 1695; his written apology - an outstanding document of a Protestant layman's theological poise in the 17th century - has survived. His self-assured stance in matters theological as well as medical is also evident from the present work, in which he frequently departs into religious similes and parentheses. - A well-preserved and well legible ms., with numerous corrections and revisions by the copyist, prepared within two decades of the original. Cf. Leipzig UB, Ms 2709 (the only known other ms. copy, also dated 1712).
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Upton, Peter.
A grey Arab mare by a Bedouin tent with four falcons on stands. No place, 1977.
Watercolour over traces of pencil. 708 x 490 mm. Signed and dated by the artist. Matted.
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Upton, Peter.
Farida. Royal Jordanian Stud. No place, 1984.
Watercolour over pencil, matted. Signed and dated by the artist lower left. 460 x 363 mm. An impressive watercolour of the famous Arabian mare, dedicated by the artist "to Rachel".
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Urreta, Louis.
Historia de la Sagrada Orden de Predicadores en los remotos Reynos de la Etiopia. Valencia, Juan Chrysostomo Garriz, 1611.
Small 4to (21 x 15 cm). (16), 410, (6) pp. With woodcut arms of the Dominican order (with the IHS and cross covering the centre) on title-page, and a variant version on the last page, and 3 woodcuts in text (2 saints and the Cross). Further with 24 decorated woodcut initials in two series, including 11 repeats. Contemporary gold-tooled mottled calf, each board with the coat of arms of the French Seguier family and with the monogram PSMF (Pierre Seguier and his wife Madeleine Fabry) repeated 6 times on the spine, rebacked (on recessed cords) with original gold-tooled backstrip laid-down, a later spine label (between the 1st and 2nd monogram), the year of publication 1611 at the foot of the spine, later endpapers. First and only edition, in Spanish, of an early work on Ethiopia by the Spanish Dominican monk Luis de Urreta (ca. 1570-1636), who wrote two volumes glorifying his own order's accomplishments in Ethiopia while diminishing those of the Jesuits (his Dominican coat of arms incorporates the IHS with cross, often used by the Jesuits). In the present work, the second of the two, he deals specifically with the Dominican presence in Ethiopia and the history of the Ethiopian saints. Like the first work, the "Historia ecclesiastica" published in 1610, it is a late example of a stream of geographical fantasies where Ethiopia was presented as the wondrous utopian kingdom of Prester John, and Urreta makes the case for an ancient Dominican presence in the country, arguing that they should thus be given precedence over the Jesuits as Catholic missionaries in that country. On pp. 88-90 it gives the information from a report to Pope Gregory XIII (1502-85) on two Dominican monks (Blackfriars) from the Alleluya monastery, who entered Mecca around 1580 and had contact with a Faqih and a Marabout. Everyone who travelled from Africa to Mecca supposedly had to travel by way of the Alleluya monastery as the rest of the region was considered uninhabitable (p. 61). - From the library of Pierre Seguier, Lord Chancellor of France from 1635 to 1672, best known for his appearance in The three musketeers, with his arms and monogram stamped in gold on the binding. And with an owner's inscription of the 17th-century French scholar Etienne Baluze ("Stephanus Baluzius Tutelensis") on title-page. With a faint water stain in the lower margin of four leaves in the introduction, a tiny corner torn from the title-page and two tiny tears in the margins of the main text, otherwise in very good condition. Binding heavily restored, but with the gold-tooled coat of arms still very clear. Olivier, 271(4). Finger & Piccolino, The shocking history of electric fishes, p. 117; Palau 345993; Salva 3417; cf. Gay, Bibl. de l'Afrique et l'Arabe 2690.
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Vaelckeren, Johann Peter a.
A Relation or Diary of the Siege of Vienna. London, printed for William Nott and George Wells, 1684.
4to. (6), 112 pp. (but: 108 pp.; pp. 61-64 skipped in pagination). With large engraved map of Vienna and its environs; wants an additional plan. Contemporary calf; spine repaired; leading edges gilt. All edges sprinkled in red. First English translation. The Imperial Councillor of War J. P. a Vaelckeren was sick in Vienna in 1683 when the Turks enclosed the capital. His report of the siege and liberation of the city quickly spread throughout Europe in numerous editions and translations. - Wants the map of Vienna; the corresponding "explanation of figures" is present in the preliminaries. Early 19th c. ownership "H. E. Somerville" to pastedown. A good copy of this rare English imprint. Sturminger 2953. Apponyi II, 1132. ESTC R28429. Gugitz I, 485. Cf. Kábdebo, p. 43f. Cf. Mayer 576ff. Cf. Jöcher IV, 1381.
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Vanderbilt, William Kissam.
Hippodrome de Carrieres-sous-Poissy, Seine et Oise, appartenant a Mr. Vanderbilt W. K. Paris, Ch[arles] Robin, 1903-4-11.
Large hand-coloured four-sheet plan. Pen and ink, graphite and watercolour on paper laid on canvas. Framed and glazed. Dimensions: app. 90 x 170 cm (sheet); 105 x 205 cm (frame). Large manuscript plan in beautiful colour; a unique witness to Vanderbilt's passion and ambitions. A member of the prominent American Vanderbilt family, William Kissam (1849-1920) managed railroads and was also a horse breeder. He was one of the founders of The Jockey Club and the owner of a successful racing stable. In 1896, Vanderbilt built the American Horse Exchange at 50th Street (Manhattan). In World War II, the United States liberty ship SS William K. Vanderbilt was named in his honour. - This impressive plan represents the horse-racing stable and track at the chateau, which Vanderbilt built in 1906, with the help of Henri Guillaume and Pierre Sardou, architects. He purchased in 1903 the land in an area of Poissy called Les Gresillons, 20 miles outside Paris. At the time, he ran a breeding operation in Deauville, making the location, also called "Carrieres-sous-Poissy", particularly convenient since it is on the way from Paris to Deauville. The hippodrome comprised three oval tracks, the outer of which measured 2400 metres, as well as a straight track. A long wall separated the racing areas from the Chateau St-Louis where the Vanderbilts lived, called the Chemin Plat, now known as Avenue Vanderbilt. With the beginning of World War I, the racing stables were shut down and eventually sold. The Chateau St. Louis is now the corporate headquarters for a local quarry, which spreads over the land previously occupied by the hippodrome. As of today, only the residential building known as "Chateau Grésillons" still stands and is currently being restored. - Provenance: Ralph Esmerian (New York jeweler).
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Vernet, Carle.
Original lithograph "Cheval Romain preparé pour la cours". Paris, Francois Delpech, n. y.
Matted, framed and glazed (frame dimensions 570 x 505 mm). Pretty lithograph by the famous horse painter Carle Vernet (1758-1836), showing an Arabian horse getting prepared for the ride. - In very good condition.
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Vernet, Horace / Goupil, [Frédéric Auguste Antoine].
Voyage d'Horace Vernet en Orient. Rédigé par M. Goupil Fesquet. Orné de seize dessins. Paris, Challamel, [1843].
Large 8vo. 228 pp. (misnumbered "328"). With lithogr. frontispiece and 15 lithogr. plates, all in beautiful contemporary colour, raised in gum Arabic, with tissue guards. Contemporary half calf with gilt spine. First edition; republished in Brussels in 1844. The artist Goupil-Fesquet (1817-78) accompanied Vernet to Egypt and Syria, where is is known to have taken the first dagerreotypes in the area - only two months after the discovery of photography was announced in 1839. This work is an account of that famous journey which became a landmark in the history of photography in the Near East. In addition to his description of the famous tour, Goupil discusses the oriental decorative arts. - Strong foxing throughout. Blackmer 718. Weber I, 309. Not in Ibrahim-Hilmy.
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Villiers, Allan.
Sons of Sindbad. London, Hodder & Stoughton Limited, 1940.
4to. XIV, 346 pp. With end-paper maps. Blue cloth with gilt embossed titles to spine. First edition. An account of sailing with the Arabs in their dhows, in the Red Sea, around the coasts of Arabia and to Zanzibar and Tanganyika; pearling in the Arabian Gulf; and the life of the shipmasters, the mariners and merchants of Kuwait. With particular attention to Basra, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Muscat. Numerous black and white photographs by the author, the master mariner and adventurer Allan Villiers (1903-82). - A fine copy. Macro, Bibliography of the Arabian Peninsula, 2250.
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Vimercati, Caesar.
Die kaiserlich königliche österreichische Marine im Oriente. Geschichtlicher Rückblick auf das Jahr 1840. Vienna, P. P. Mechitaristen, 1845.
8vo. 64 pp. Original printed wrappers. Caesar Vimercati describes his experiences on board of "La Guerriera" during the year 1840 and provides descriptions of Constantinople, Alexandria, Beirut, Saida, Acre, etc. Austrian warships had their first military encounters during the Oriental Crisis of 1840 as a part of a British-led fleet which ousted the Viceroy of Egypt, Muhammad Ali, from Ottoman Syria. Archduke Friedrich took part in the campaign personally and was awarded the Military Order of Maria Theresa for his exceptional leadership: "Es ist allgemein bekannt, daß um diese Zeit, und zwar genau am 15. Juli zu London eine Uebereinkunft zwischen den Repräsentanten der vier Großmächte England, Rußland, Preußen und Oesterreich geschlossen worden war, welche die Bezwingung der maßlosen Eroberungssucht Mehemed Ali's zum Zwecke hatte […] ". - Wrappers slightly dust-soiled, brownstaining to paper throughout, otherwise a good copy. OCLC 797734900. Not in Kalemkiar or in Kat. der k. k. Kriegsbibliothek.
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Vincenzo Maria de S. Caterina da Siena.
Il Viaggio all'Indie Orientali. Con le osservationi, e successi net medesimo, i costumi, kiti di varie natione, & reconditissimi arcani de gentili; cavati consomma diligenza da loro scritti, con la descrittione degl'animali quadrupedi, serpenti, ucelli, e piante di quel mondo nuovo, con le loro virtu singolari. Venice, Apresso Giacomo Zattoni, 1678.
4to. (24), 516, (20) pp. With woodcut printer's device on title page and several woodcut head- and tailpieces and initials. Contemporary limp vellum. Second edition of one of the most important 17th-century Italian travel reports of the Middle East and India. Vincenzo Maria (Murchio) was a Carmelite missionary with a keen eye and much interest to record manners, customs, and natural history. Travelling through Turkey, Lebanon, Syria, Persia, Arabia before arriving in India, he returned to his homeland via Muscat. His book is far more then an intinerary of the Carmelite mission to India: book I recounts the journey to Malabar, also mentioning the Middle East, Mecca, Arabia, religion and other subjects. Book two is about the Christians of St. Thomas; book three is on political, religious and social life of Malabar. Book IV, probably prepared with the aid of Father Matthew, describes the plants of Malabar and the return trip to Europe. With a description of Goa. "Perhaps the most important of the 17th century Italian travellers" (Atabey). - A good copy with slight staining and soiling. Atabey 1297 (3rd edition). Streit V, 538. Cat. NHSM I, p. 240. Graesse VI, 327. Not in Blackmer or Weber.
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Vogüé, Melchior de.
Le Temple de Jerusalem. Monographie du Haram-ech-Chérif. Suivie d'un essai sur la topographie de la Ville-Sainte. Paris, Noblet & Baudry, 1864.
Large folio (330 x 448 mm). VIII, 142 pp. With 57 text illustrations, 37 numbered plates and a final extra heliogravure plate. Contemporary marbled half calf. Marbled endpapers. A study by Melchior, marquis de Vogüé (1829-1916), of the decorative interior art of the Mosque of Omar, with colour reproductions of details of painted entablements, cupolas, and other mural decorations, of the enameled porcelain ornament, and of stained glass windows. Also includes details of sculptured pilasters, capitals, entablements, etc. - Waterstained throughout. OCLC 2227954.
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