[Biblia syriaca - NT].MareMagnum
4to. (4), 552, (2) pp. Contemporary half calf. The first complete New Testament printed by the BFBS entirely in Syriac, edited by Samuel Lee. "The editor based his text upon Schaaf's edition; but he collated an ancient Syriac MS. belonging to Adam Clarke, a MS. from the Lebanon, dated 1523, now at Cambridge, and a third MS. (without vowel-points) brought by Claudius Buchanan from Travancore, as well as the Commentaries of Ephrem Syrus, and also made some use of the collations of R. Jones. The printing of this edition was completed in 1816" (Darlow/M.). This copy has the "extensive obliterations [...] in the section headings, made by means of a stamp and violet ink", which were "made by order of the BFBS Committee, on the ground that the headings contravened the rules of the Society" (ibid.). - Binding rubbed and bumped; occasional marginal scribblings in red crayon (more extensive on p. 5). Traces of worming in the upper margin of the final two leaves overpasted with brown paper. In all a good copy of a rarely seen edition. Darlow/Moule 8979. NUC LVI, 13. BM XVIII, 1449. OCLC 921205405.
8vo. (2), 6, 637, (3) pp. Contemporary full red morocco on 4 raised bands with giltstamped spine, covers with ornamental blindstamps and gilt rules; leading edgesgilt, inner dentelle gilt. All edges gilt. Luxuriously bound Turkish New Testament, newly translated from the Greek by the German-born William Gottlieb Schauffler (1798-1883). This is the first Constantinople-printed complete New Testament in Osmanli Turkish ever printed in Arabic characters: previous editions had been printed in Greek or Armenian characters only. - "Ordained a missionary [..., Schauffler] reached Constantinople in 1833. His linguistic gifts and missionary experience fitted him for translation-work [...] In 1858 the British and Foreign Bible Society commissioned him to transcribe into Arabic character W. Goodell's Armeno-Turkish version of the Bible, slightly adapting it to meet the needs of the Moslems. When this proved impracticable, he was authorised to make an independent version in simple, idiomatic Osmanli" (Darlow/M., p. 1641). - This copy was bought in Constantinople on 9 August 1879 by J. Gies for 25 silver piastres, as noted by the collector in ink on the title-page. Later in the library of by Karl Schäffeler (his ownership, dated 20 Sept. 1927, on the flyleaf and his bibliographical note on the pastedown). - Occasional light browning, but a well-preserved, pretty copy. Darlow/Moule 9488. Özege 10984. OCLC 42824525
4to. (4), 209, (3) pp. Original green cloth with giltstamped spine and cover titles. Published as a description of the careers of Royal Navy officers in the mid and latter part of the 19th century, this also constitutes an important source book for the activity of the UK forces in the Arabian Gulf during a crucial period of British activity in the region. Contains plentifold references to places along the Gulf coast, Bahrein and Mascat, discussing in particular the survey of the Gulf undertaken by Captain Haines (p. 38f.), Captain Ethersey & Commodore Charles deployment in the Gulf (pp. 54f.), work performed by captain Felix Jones (p. 88ff.), publications of maps by Lieut. Whitelock on the Gulf and Oman (p. 90), map making (p. 100), Marine surveys in the Gulf and mapping (pp. 109f.), list of charts made for the "Persian Gulf Pilot" (p. 128), survey of the reefs near Bahrein (p. 153), Lieut. Wish's map of Bahrein (p. 158) and map making (p. 195). - Extremeties slightly rubbed and bumped; binding a little loosened. Chapters 1 and 2 have photographic portraits mounted at the head of the page; the article of Admiral Sir Edward Belcher has a photographic reproduction of an oil portrait from the National Portrait Gallery loosely inserted. Numerous handwritten annotations. From the library of J. A. Edgell, 1940s editor of the "Persian Gulf Pilot", with his bookplate to pastedown and handwritten ownership to flyleaf; also with bookplate of Allan Carruthers of Abergavenny, Monmouthshire. OCLC 1117176057.
Wall map, lithographed in colour, ca. 57 x 82 cm. Scale 1:1,500,000. Large-format Ottoman map of Palestine and Syria produced shortly before the First World War, including Eastern Anatolia and Cyprus as well as the northern Sinai Peninsula. Vilayet divisions are given in red, roads and rail transportation ways are indicated in detail. A separate inset shows the Hejaz Railway with tracks running as far south as Medina and various projected but never-realized extensions southwards to Mecca. - Traces of one old vertical and three horizontal folds; light brownstaining at centre and lower edge. A rare survival.
4to. (16), 194, (6) pp. With a double-page engraved table of Arabic characters. Contemporary full blindstamped calf. First edition of the first book printed with Roman letters in Turkey. Holdermann's "Grammaire turque" is the first French-Turkish grammar, printed on behalf of the French embassy to the Porte, at the first printing press established in 1726 by Zaid Aga Effendi, son of the Turkish ambassador to France, and Ibrahim Müteferrika. The type apparently was sent out from France especially for this work. Words and phrases are given both in Arabic-script Osmanli and in Roman transliteration. The engraved alphabetic table displays the names and shapes of letter forms for French and Turkish alphabets, including the letter forms used in various styles of Turkish writing for different uses: Nesghi for the Qur'an, Divani for business, Tealik for law and poetry, Kyrma for public registers; Sulus, like capitals, is used for book titles and imperial patents, Jakuti, and Rejani. - Since 1719 the French embassy had been calling for improved instruction and grammatical texts, and the present work was compiled by Holdermann "aprés avoir consulté, & conferé avec les plus habils maîtres, sur tout avec le sçavant Ibrahim [Müteferrika] Effendi, sur cet langue" (preface) for the use of the school of the "Enfants des Langues" (the school of the dragomans, or official interpreters) at Constantinople. Holdermann's book was also adopted as a teaching text by the Jesuit College at Paris, which had received a number of copies from the librarian at the Bibliothèque du Roi, abbé Bignon, in 1731 and 1732. - Holdermann, a Jesuit from Strasbourg, spent some four years as a missionary in Constantinople, dying there in 1730. He had projected also a French-Armenian grammar, which was unfinished at the time of his death. - Binding a little rubbed; corners bumped. Insignificant traces of worming to lower gutter near the beginning; dampstain to margin of first quire and diffuse dampstains to pp. 131-138. The first leaf of the index is bound after the title-page, the remaining two at the end. Complete with the final errata leaf. - Provenance: contemporary ownership of a Vlach nobleman in French service on the lower flyleaf ("Mr Pierre Rhetorides Grand Vornike de Valachie et Michmandare de Sa Hautesse le Grand Marechale de Frence"). The principality of Wallachia was then vassal state of the Ottoman Empire supported by France between 1730 and 1769. Blackmer 824. Atabey 586. Zenker 304. De Backer/Sommervogel IV, 431, 1. Toderini III, p. 89, no. VIII. Watson, "Ibrahim Müteferrika and Turkish incunabula", Journal of the American Oriental Society 88.3 (1968), 435-441 at p. 437, no. 8. Brunet II, 1693 ("volume peu commun et assez recherché").
Oblong 4to (260 x 178 mm). 47, (1) pp. With numerous black-and-white photographic prints in the text (some full-page) as well as 14 original black-and-white photographs loosely inserted. Printed original wrappers with mounted black and white illustration. First edition. - Extremely rare illustrated account of the trip taken by the Zurich gymnastic club "Alte Sektion" to the French national gymnastic festival held in Tunis on Easter 1912. It narrates the participants' 42-hour journey by ship from Marseille to Tunis as well as their impressions of the city before going on to describe the festival, including the Zurich squad's procession and the athletic competition. Instead of returning immediately after the festival, the group stayed in Africa for another week to visit Carthage, Dougga, Testour, and Constantine. - The full-page illustrations include the Zurich squad in their gymnastic attire and a Bedouin family with several camels. Loosely inserted are 14 original vintage photographs, some of them with contemporary pencil inscriptions on verso, further documenting the journey aboard the steamer, the short stay in Marseille, the festivities, palm trees before the Tunis cathedral, the trips to Dougga and Carthage, and a Tunesian procession. - Title-page with a few small marginal tears, otherwise in perfect condition. A very well preserved item commemorating the wide reach of the European gymnastics club movement. Not in auction records; the only other copies known are held at the Zentralbibliothek Zürich and the German National Library, Leipzig. OCLC 731661031.
8vo. 244 pp. With a colour frontispiece and 9 colour plates, all drawn after Hornby's original watercolour sketches. Contemporary giltstamped full cloth, spine and front edge repaired with green cloth in the 1990s, with 2 giltstamped spine labels taken over form the original spine. First edition. - Intriguing account by a woman traveller visiting the Sinai Peninsula in 1899 and Petra in 1901, her stops including Gaza, Jaffa, Jericho, Jerusalem, Port Said, and Suez. Hornby, who was not only a pioneer among woman travellers but also an ambitious mountaineer, created lovely watercolour sketches of her impressions during the journey, some of which are printed here. They show her tent in Ayn Musa, palm trees in Wady Ghurundel, Mount Serbal, Ras Sufsafeh, St. Catherine's monastery in Sinai, the Urn Tombs of Petra, the Siq passage leading up to the Al-Kazneh, Ad Deir, and Mount Hor from Bidebda. - Browned throughout with some foxing, more pronounced among first and last leaves. Bookplate of Peter Ward (d. 2004) of Purlieu in Upper Colwall, former intelligence officer in the Middle East and North Africa and fluent speaker of Arabic, to front pastedown; flyleaf shows remains of an earlier, removed bookplate and a pencil note regarding repairs to the book done in 1995. - No copy in auction records. A rare example of Arabian travel literature from the early 20th century featuring a female protagonist. OCLC 560058182.
8vo. (6), 47, (1) pp. With 38 half-tone black and white plates. Original rose printed wrappers. First edition. - A beautifully illustrated history and guide to the Arab Museum based in the Khan Murjan of Baghdad, printed in Arabic throughout. - The Khan Murjan was built in the 14th century by Aminuddin Murjan (d. 774 H / 1372 CE). The building was designed as a caravanserai and, for centuries, housed merchants, scholars and travellers passing through the city. With two stories of rooms, a high-ceilinged central hall and beautifully ornamented windows and arches, it was (and continues to be) an important and handsome example of Islamic architecture. - Due to later periods of neglect and flood damage, the building languished in semi-ruin for close to two hundred years. Then, in the early 1930s, Sati' al-Husri (1880-1968), the Director of Antiquities, ordered renovations and repairs so that it could be reborn as a museum dedicated to Islamic artefacts. - Some chips to head and tail of spine, a few closed tears to extremities, spine slightly sunned. A very good copy of an innately fragile publication. OCLC 222915818.
Ca. 235 x 190 mm. Original hand-coloured map on tissue paper. In Ottoman script and Arabic. Two hand-drawn maps on a single sheet, made in the Ottoman Empire, likely in Istanbul, near the beginning of the 20th century. The map to the left depicts the Baghdad Vilayet, embracing Central Iraq. The map on the right features the Basra Vilayet, extending from Southern Iraq down the southern coast of the Arabian Gulf to include Kuwait, what is now the Dhahran area of Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Qatar. By the late 19th century the Gulf States had become de-facto British protectorates and were no longer practically subject to Ottoman rule; still, the Sublime Porte never relinquished its sovereignty. - Maps such as this, executed on thin tracing paper, were commonly made as educational tools at elite Ottoman schools and universities during the early 20th century, although few such specimens survive. - Clean and bright, with light creasing and traces of an old vertical centrefold.
Small folio (210 x 297 mm). 2 volumes (text and atlas). Text vol.: (6), 134, (2) pp. with 21 text illustrations. Atlas vol.: 58 loose black-and-white plates and plans as issued. Text vol. in modern cloth-backed boards with original upper wrapper preserved and mounted on front cover; fitted together with the plates in modern cloth-backed board folder with velcro fasteners, preserving original upper board. Third and final instalment of the "Archaeological Mission to Arabia" series published by the "Societé des Fouilles Archéologiques" between 1909 and 1922, this issue dedicated entirely to the famous Umayyad desert castles Quseir Amra, Qasr Al-Kharanah, and Qasr Tuba in present-day eastern Jordan. "The authors found the description of Qasr Haraneh and Qasr Tuba to be faulty and unreliable and re-described them completely. They give numbers of views of Qeseir Amra and a briefer description. The text also includes itineraries and historical and epigraphical notes. It is well arranged, and seems to provide all the information that can possibly be wanted" (Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society 57.1 [1925], p. 161). - Slight traces of worming in lower margin (no loss to text). Folder lightly rubbed around the edges, otherwise in good general condition. OCLC 490111584.
4to (214 x 250 mm). 2 parts in one volume. XXI, (3), 328, 242, (10) pp. Title-page printed in red and black. With engraved portrait frontispiece, 7 engraved plates (2 of which folding), and 1 engraved folding map of Egypt. Contemporary full calf with traces of gilt spine (oxydized) and remnants of a spine-label. Marbled endpapers. Edges sprinkled red. First edition. - Prominent compendium of all that was known about Egypt at the time, taking the form of a series of letters written by the French consul and inspector of the French institutions in the Levante, Benoît de Maillet (1656-1738), stationed in Cairo from 1692 to 1708, edited and compiled for publication by the cleric Jean-Baptiste le Mascrier (1697-1760). During his time in Egypt, Maillet developed a great interest in Arabic and Egyptian life, as well as in Egyptian antiquities and Arabic architecture. With his work he greatly expanded European knowledge about the country, its antiquities and the manners and costums of its inhabitants. The frontispiece shows a portrait of the author, while the plates depict tombs, sarcophagi, obelisks, and animals. The two folding plates exhibit the Mikias, or Nilometer, in Cairo, and a cross section of the Great Pyramid of Giza. The final chapter discusses the annual Hajj to Mecca and describes the cities of Mecca and Medina, as well as Mahomet's tomb. - Title-page a little duststained, with traces of a removed stamp of ownership. Somewhat foxed and brownstained throughout, more pronounced among first and last leaves. Upper margins slightly waterstained near the end. The map of Egypt shows small marginal flaws. Upper joints and extremities professionally restored. A near-contemporary note on the estimated price of the volume by a former owner on front flyleaf. A good copy. Atabey 748. Blackmer 1061. Gay 2105. Ibrahim-Hilmy I, 170. Paulitschke 717. Not in Weber.
Small folio (230 x 286 mm). XVI, 280, (2) pp. Contemporary boards with printed spine label. First edition of the History of the Ghasnevids by the Persian historian Mir Khwand (ca. 1434-98), part of the author's famous "Rawzat al-Safa". Persian text followed by a Latin translation by Friedrich Wilken, professor at Heidelberg. The Turkoman dynasty of the Ghasnevids ruled in Afghanistan and northern India between 975 and 1186 CE, when they were conquered by the Persian Ghurids. - Fairly strong foxing throughout; some buckling to lower spine-end. Untrimmed, wide-margined copy from the collection of the Protestant bishop of Bavaria, Friedrich Veit (1861-1948), with his ownership stamp to the front flyleaf. Old stamps of the Strasbourg National and University Library (deaccessioned as a duplicate). Rare; no other copy in auction records. Zenker I, 877. Schwab 387. Strout 206. OCLC 6906577.
Small folio (238 x 303 mm). (2), 638, (2) pp. Modern half calf with red and green gilt spine labels, bound in 19th century style. First printed edition of the celebrated Islamic biography of Alexander the Great (356-323 BC) by the Persian poet Nizami, completed ca. 599/1202. Published under the auspices of Sir Gilbert Elliot-Murray-Kynynmound, the First Earl of Minto (1751-1814), and printed in Persian throughout but for the English title. - "The Alexander of the Persian romances is much more colorful than his Western counterpart [...] Nizami celebrates him first as a king and conqueror, then as a sage and a prophet. In 'Iskandarnamah', in addition to being a zealous Moslem, Alexander becomes an ardent lover with numerous wives and concubines" (Southgate, "Portraits of Alexander in Persian Alexander-Romances of the Islamic Era"). - Islamic myths about Alexander the Great are thought to have derived in part from Qur'anic references to the "Dhu'l-Qarnayn" ("He of the Two Horns") as well as from the Greek sources in translation. "The principal episodes of the legend of Alexander, as known to the Muslim tradition, are elaborated in the [Eskander-nama]: the birth of Alexander, his succession to the Macedonian throne, his war against the Negroes who had invaded Egypt, the war with the Persians, ending with the defeat and death of Dara and Alexander's marriage to Dara's daughter, his pilgrimage to Mecca. Nezami then dwells at some length on Alexander's stay in the Caucasus and his visit to Queen Nushaba of Barda'a and her court of Amazons; this lady takes over the role of Candace in earlier versions of the Alexander saga. Alexander then goes to India and China. During his absence the Rus (i.e., the Russian Vikings) invade the Caucasus and capture Barda'a (as they in fact did some two centuries before Nezami's time) and take Nushaba prisoner. Alexander's wars with the Rus, which are depicted at considerable length, end with his victory and his magnanimous treatment of the defeated army. The [Eskander-nama] concludes with the account of Alexander's unsuccessful search for the water of immortal life" (Encylopaedia Iranica, Vol. VIII, pp. 612-614). Along the way Alexander's conquests of much of Central Asia and the pre-Islamic world are described: Dara (Syria), Ajam (near Kuwait), Kayan (Afghanistan), the Arabian Peninsula, Khorasan (Northern Iran), and so on. - Ca. 20 pages with wormholes affecting some text, wide margins. Some browning throughout. Discarded and sold from the Library of Haverford College, Pennsylvania, with their drystamp to the title-page. Later in the Alexander the Great Collection of Julio Berzunza (1896-1952), Professor of Languages at the University of New Hampshire. Graesse IV, 680. Brunet IV, 83; Ebert 14833 ("1811" in error). Nawabi 414. OCLC 41609907.
207 x 177 mm each, colour-printed. A set of two maps removed from an Ottoman atlas published shortly before the Great War. The first map shows the Near East, Egypt and Northern Arabia with the Hejaz Railroad's branches as completed by 1911. Diagrams in the margin depict the elevation of the railroad along its line. The second map shows the Arabian Peninsula and its railroads; an inset shows the Suez Canal (with the date of its completion given as 1869 CE and 1285 Rumi calendar). - A soft central fold and tiny edge tears. Traces of former tab-mounting within an atlas; handwritten Ottoman Turkish titles in black ink on verso.
8vo. VIII, 252, (2) pp. With 16 black-and-white photographic plates. Original green cloth, gilt lettering to spine and black lettering to front cover. First edition. - An account of missionary work in Mount Lebanon, with a description of the Druze people, their history and their faith. Parfit narrates "seven years' work amongst the secret sects of Syria", focusing on the establishment of mission schools in the mountainous lands south and east of Beirut, where many Druze communities were based. To the main narrative of school-building and teaching, he adds much on relations between the Druzes and other communities (including animosities with the Maronites), and significant events such as the dangerously severe Winter of 1911. - The book is attractively illustrated with the author's photographs and each chapter is preceded by a line from "Arabian Wisdom", a collection of Qur'anic quotes and proverbs compiled by John Wortabet. - Very light wear to extremities, corners slightly bumped, very good otherwise. Endpapers browned, a few instances of spotting, rest of interior clean and bright. Ownership inscription of Marian Parfit of Westcot, near Wantage, Berkshire, to front free endpaper and her bookplate to front pastedown. The Arab History: A Bibliographical List (Cairo, 1966), p. 132. OCLC 250774345.
8vo. VII, (1), 124, (4) pp. Printed in red and black throughout. Contemporary quarter leather with gilt spine over turquoise marbled boards. Rare Osmanli grammar, attractively printed in red and black throughout, with all words in Arabic characters given in red. - Binding a little bumped at extremeties; occasional very minor brownstaining. Still a pretty copy. OCLC lists only three copies (Hungarian Academy of Sciences; University Library of Basel; Bogaziçi University Library, Istanbul). OCLC 1015017770.
Large 4to (240 x 292 mm). (6), III, (3), 418, 4 pp. Contemporary Western quarter morocco over marbled boards, spine gilt with title. First edition. - A reader issued to supply the "English Student of the Pushto (or Pukhto) language [with] some work written in the colloquial", published "under the sanction and patronage of the Government of the Panjáb" (preface). It became the official text book for the Pashto Examination. The editor Hughes served as a missionary in Peshawar (1865-84) with the Church Missionary Society. - In lithographed Pashto throughout save for the preliminary English letterpress matter. Binding rather rubbed and scuffed, spine and extremities professionally repaired; three leaves remargined at the lower edge (not affecting text). A few small wormholes. Contemporary pencil annotations to the text and endleaves. McLachlan, Bibliography Of Afghanistan, no. 6883. OCLC 5111396.
9 original gelatin silver photographs laid down on thick cream card (likely removed from an album), each measuring approx. 92 by 138 mm. Three captioned and/or numbered in the negative. Rare photographs of Muscat depicting variously, "The Rock of Muscat", the Al-Jalali Fort, and the Al-Mirani Fort. A number of the images are of a military nature, from which it is possible to surmise that the photographer was an officer: a torpedo being fired, a significant cache of weapons and troops (bluejackets) disembarking on the shore to be greeted by a crowd of civilians. Such scenes reflect the British presence in the Gulf of Oman at the time, where they were engaged in combatting the East African slave trade, suppressing the smuggling of arms and generally attempting to exert influence whenever possible. - Some marginal fading, otherwise very good. Original photographs of Muscat from this era are exceedingly rare, especially in this condition. The best-known examples were taken by the professional photographer A. R. Fernandez, but the present set certainly represents an amateur effort, and these are likely to be the only surviving prints of the images.
4to. 2 vols. bound in one. 14 pp. (index), 210 pp., (1 blank), 7 pp. (index), 190 pp. Original full calf with later paper label; later marbled paper on the spine. An important first-hand account of relations between the Porte and central Europe as well as the wider political events during the second half of the 18th century. Written by the Baghdad-born diplomat Ahmed Vasif Effendi and also known as "Vasif Tarihi" ("Vasif's History"), it forms one of the most important works of Ottoman political history for the period between 1754 and 1774, when the author actively participated in the world of diplomacy in the Ottoman Empire, on the Balkans, in Russia and in Vienna. Vasif was known for his quick temper and was later described by the German orientalist Franz Babinger as "vain, stingy, jealous, and excessively vicious" (cf. p. 336). His text was left unfinished after a dispute with the Istanbul-based press of Rasid Efendi, which Vasif himself had helped establish, and it was completed by Sadullah Enveri (d. 1794), who himself had participated in the military events described. - At the time one of the few available printed historico-political accounts of contemporary Middle Eastern relations with the West during the age of Enlightenment, the book proved extremely popular throughout Europe and is today found in many European libraries. This is the third and last edition, the second printed at Bulaq, by the first official and governmental printing press in Egypt, after first being published in Istanbul in 1219 (1803/04). - Bulaqor Al-Amiriya Press, the first official and governmental printing press established in Egypt, was founded in 1820 by the viceroy of Egypt, Muhammad Ali. As early as in 1815 the first delegation was sent from Egypt to Milan to learn printing. After the building for the press was finished in the autumn of 1820, it took another two years to transport the machines and train the employees, and the first book, an Arabic-Italian dictionary, was published in 1822. Viceroy Muhammad Ali started several reform programmes with a view to create a modern Egyptian society after the European model, and the press was part of this modernisation. He is remembered for establishing modern Egypt as an independent country. - Printed on thick paper. Interior clean with sporadic old staining; old pencil and ink annotations to endpapers. Binding shows larger scratches and loss of material, but still in the original Bulaq covers. Provenance: 19th century bookseller's label of Benjamin Duprat, Paris, on front pastedown; later owned by the Iraqi architect Mohamed Makiya (2015). Özege V, 22519. OCLC 949617481, 777193206, 320228577, 780208235, 165361809, 26779362 and 600848792 (some examples on microfilm). Ethan L. Menchinger, The First of the Modern Ottomans: The Intellectual History of Ahmed Vasif (2017). Franz Babinger, Die Geschichtsschreiber der Osmanen und ihre Werke (1927), pp. 335-337.
794 x 628 mm. Scale 1:4,000,000. Mounted on cloth. Folded. Rare, large-scale map of western Arabia including all but the easternmost part of the Peninsula (ending about 100 miles east of Qatar). "This map has been compiled almost entirely from published sources, of which the principal are (1) Hunter's Arabia 1:2,000,000; (2) War Office quarter inch of S.W. Arabia; (3) War Office 1:250,000 of the rest of the Turkish Empire; R.G.S. materials have also been used" (editor's note). Some slight brownstaining in places, otherwise well-preserved. Not in OCLC.
4to (24.5 × 18 cm). With title-page printed in red and black and 48 albumen prints (measuring ca. 10 × 13 cm) mounted on leaves with lithographed captions. Original publisher's goldblocked blue cloth, gilt edges. First and only edition of a collection of 48 albumen prints of photographs by the British photographer Francis Bedford (1816-94). "A significant boost to his reputation came with the commission to accompany the Prince of Wales, later King Edward VII, on a trip to Egypt and the Holy Land in the spring and early summer of 1862. The resulting images were exhibited in London in July 1862 [...] Selections from Bedford's Middle Eastern views were included in [...] The Holy Land, Egypt, Constantinople, Athens etc" (Hannavy). The photographs mainly show ancient and Islamic architecture, as well as some landscape views, in and around Cairo, Gizeh, Thebes, Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Damascus, Baalbek, Istanbul (Constantinople), Athens and more. The photographs are accompanied by an introduction and 100 pages of descriptive text by W. M. Thompson. - With bookplate. Slightly browned with some occasional foxing, not affecting the photographs. Binding slightly rubbed along the extremities. Overall in good condition. Blackmer 1483. J. Hannavey, Encyclopedia of 19th-century photography, pp. 134-136.
4to. 13 (paginated "9" in error), (3) pp. Woodcut printer's device to title page, large woodcut initials. Contemporary orange paper wrappers with floral designs stamped in black and white. Very scarce work about Cattarina Santorovichia, a Turkish girl from the Ottoman sandjak of Clissa (Klis) north of Spalato (Split) in Dalmatia, who crossed into Venetian territory and converted to Christianity. Mihale Satorovic, as she was born, was from a respected and well-connected Turkish family, the daughter of Ahmed Aga, an officer in the local garrison of Clissa, and the affair provoked a major international incident. "Although Venice had been at peace with the Ottoman Empire for almost half a century, the Spalato border was a sensitive area where tensions occasionally flared" (Dursteler, 63). When the girl disappeared in late December 1621, her parents immediately feared that she had been kidnapped and taken to the Venetian side - a relatively frequent phenomenon on the border that occurred for a variety of reasons. Although it was soon established that the girl had not been forcibly abducted, but rather had fled her home of her own free will so as to become a Christian, Muslim sensitivities were ignited. On 23 January 1622 Mihale was baptized "Cattarina" in Spalato, and the attendant ceremonies only intensified the anger on the Ottoman side: indeed, "immediately following Mihale's flight, eight Venetian subjects from the neighboring town of Trau were taken hostage in retaliation" (67), and the threat of military violence caused the Venetians to deploy six armed ships to Spalato. "The flight of Mihale Satorovic was an extremely serious affair that dragged out over five years, and eventually engaged the Ottoman and Venetian military forces, as well as the highest officials in the region and in the respective imperial capitals" (68). - The present oration that recounts part of the girl's history is an important source about the affair. While the occasion is here termed "nozze", it is clearly not a wedding (not even one "con la chiesa"), but apparently closer to a confirmation rite celebrated for the recently converted girl. The author was the parish priest at S. Eufemia in Giudecca, Venice, and dedicates his work to Giovanni Cornaro, Procurator of S. Marco. - Remains of an old label on the title-page. An excellent copy. Extremely rare; ICCU lists a single copy in Italy (Biblioteca nazionale Marciana, Venezia). ICCU VEAE\128667. Cf. Eric Dursteler, Renegade Women (Baltimore, 2011), pp. 62ff.
74 x 48 cm. A fine example of Giacomo Gastaldi's map of Southeast Asia, China, and India, perhaps the single most influential map of the region published in the 16th century. - Gastaldi's map has a remarkable history, one that presents a microcosm of Italian mapmaking in the middle of the 16th century. It begins with the publication of a single section in 1559, which was intended as a separate map. Additional sections were added in 1561, creating the portion of the existing map which extends south to the Equator. In 1565, two additional sections were added, in order to show all of Indonesia and the neighbouring islands as far south as Java Minor. - "In its original form the map extended only to the equator, so that most of the Indonesian islands were not included. To remedy this, in about 1565, two narrow sheets were made by the great Italian engraver Paolo Forlani to supplement the main body of Gastaldi's map [...] This lower addition bears an inscription in the lower left corner which reads 'si vende...' [...] indicating the location of the shop of the publisher Bertelli" (Suarez). - Of all of Gastaldi's Asian continental maps, this one more than any other "had a major influence on the work of Ortelius and de Jode [...] In their representation of the coastlines his maps are superior to all previously known maps of Asia, either drawn by hand or printed" (Schilder, in: The Map Collector 17, p. 7). - On the right-hand side of the map, Gastaldi provides a list of about 100 place names on the map, showing both their ancient and modern names. In his excellent study of Gastaldi's maps of Asia and their relationship to the accounts of Marco Polo's travels, Nordinskold notes that while Gastaldi has clearly incorporated information from Marco Polo's travels, Gastaldi relied also upon the accounts of other contemporary travelers to the East. Most notably, the dedication to Marcus Fugger (1529-97) is strong evidence that Gastaldi had access to the Fugger family library, one of the most important libraries compiled in the 15th and 16th centuries. During the 16th century, the Fugger Library was perhaps the best private library in the world, surpassing even the Vatican Library. - Nordinskold goes on to note: "Finally, it must be remembered that Gastaldi, under the guidance of Ramusio, is supposed to have aided in repairing or repainting the famous wall-maps in Sala dello scudo in Venice [...] If such was the case, it may be considered probable that the monumental maps of Africa and Asia by Gastaldi have had some connection to [Gastaldi's map of Asia], that these copper-plate engravings are a reproduction of the originals of the wall maps in that form which was given them in the middle of the 16th century". Quirino notes that Gastaldi's map is the first appearance of the name "Philippines" ("Philippina") on a printed document. - The map is rare on the market. We note no examples of this first edition of the map on at auction or in recorded dealer catalogs in at least 15 years. Tooley, Italian Atlases 63. Karrow 30/92 (note). Woodward, Forlani 36 (note). Suarez, South East Asia, pp. 130-157 Quirino, Philippine Cart., p. XV & 95. Nordinskold, The Influence of the "Travels of Marco Polo" on Jacobo Gastaldi's Maps of Asia, in: The Geographical Journal 13, No. 4.
Large 4to (32 x 26 cm). "XVIII" [= XX], (2), 243, (1) pp. With various passages including the original Arabic text. Modern half morocco. First edition of the first substantial English translation of the travel account of Abu Abdullah Mohammed ibn Batuta (1304-68/69), known in the West as the Arabian Marco Polo, with extensive footnotes. "While on a pilgrimage to Mecca he made a decision to extend his travels throughout the whole of the Islamic world. Possibly the most remarkable of the Arab travellers, he is estimated to have covered 75,000 miles in forty years" (Howgego). His journeys included trips to North Africa, the Horn of Africa, West Africa and Eastern Europe in the West, and to the Middle East, South Asia, Central Asia, Southeast Asia and China. - The account known as the Rihla, is esteemed for its lively descriptions of his travels, giving notable information on the history, geography and botany of the countries and cities Ibn Batuta visited. He describes, for example, the city of Aden as follows: "From this place I went to the city of Aden, which is situated on the sea-shore. This is a large city, but without either seed, water, or tree. They have, however, reservoirs, in which they collect the rain-water for drinking. Some rich merchants reside here: and vessels from India occasionally arrive here. The inhabitants are modest and religious" (p. 55). - A very good copy, binding very good as well. Howgego, to 1800, B47.
Folio (237 x 312 mm). 2 parts in one volume. XXV, (1), 128 pp. (French and Latin text); 50 pp. (Arabic text); central blank. Contemp. half brown hard-grained morocco, raised bands on gilt fleuron spine. Marbled endpapers. First edition, with the full text in Arabic: an early effort of the Franco-Irish editor. The pre-Islamic Arab poet Imru al-Qays (497-545) from the Kinda is regarded as the greatest writer in Arabic of his time. His Diwan (complete collection of poems), written in a language of impeccable classicism, was collected from the 8th century; it includes 28 to 68 parts according to recensions. - The Irish scholar William McGuckin de Slane (1801-78), a disciple of Silvestre de Sacy, to whom the present work is dedicated, went on to serve as Principal Interpreter of Arabic of the French Army and Professor of Arabic at the École de langues orientales in Paris. It is remarkable the he chose to present a Latin version of these works: he later became known for his translations into French and English of Arab and Persian historians. - Occasional browning and foxing. GAL I, 24. OCLC 457350459.