rif. 185882Japan: early 19th century. An ominous cloud over the battlefield A guide to interpreting cloud shapes to discover the outcome of battle passed down as secret knowledge between military strategists. Clouds reveal when and when not to attack enemy movements and treacherous allies. One of the techniques reads "If you see a black cloud rising above yellow clouds that means the enemy is approaching seeking battle. However even if this does not turn out to be the case you should take note of this and prepare within nine days" f. 2r. Others advise "If you see a sheep cloud above your castle you must not attack - you will incur great losses" f. 4v and "If you see 5 or 10 people standing in the clouds above your castle their heads all touching each other that means your allies are not to be trusted. There is a large conspiracy being planned" f. 13r. The techniques were supposedly acquired in China by the scholar Kibi no Makibi. According to the colophon they had been practised there since the reign of Jiang Ziya 12th century BCE. The scribe is unknown but the colophon is attributed to Morita Izumi no Kami Shigetsugu. Oblong octavo. With 29 watercolour illustrations on recto and verso of 15 leaves each with manuscript explanation; text in Japanese. Original paper wrappers original brown thread fukuro-toji binding. Contemporary black keiin completion stamp on front wrapper. A little creased especially at edges wrappers moderately foxed sometime relined with Japanese paper illustrations bright: a very good example. unknown

Peter Harrington · Regno Unito2750,00 £≈ 3272,72 €

RÉGIS (J.B., Traducteur), MOHL (Julius, Éditeur)Livre Rare Book

Y-KING, Antiquissimus Sinarum liber quem ex latina interpretatione P. Regis aliorumque ex Soc. Jesu P. P. Editit Julius MOHL.

1834rif. PHO-1520Stuttgart & Tubingue, Cotta, 1834-1839. 2 volumes in-8 de [1] f., xvi-474-[1] pp., 4 planches dépliantes ; [1] f., 588 pp. Premier tome relié en demi-basane brune, dos lisse, titre doré, date en queue (reliure moderne) et second tome broché, couverture d’attente, inscriptions manuscrites sur la couverture ("à Monsieur M. Barucchi - Directeur du Musée égyptien, professeur d'histoire à l'Université de Turin), dos usé avec qqs fentes. Les deux volumes réunis dans un emboîtage toilé bleu moderne. Très légères mouillures claires par endroits.