Hammer-Purgstall, Joseph von.MareMagnum
Frontispiece plus (8), XXXII, (2), 115, (3) pp.; 48 ff. 8vo. With a lithographic frontispiece line drawing of a stone-cut falcon; the Turkish title-page with the title in a double-ogive decoration with arabesques, a braided border, flowers and 3 falcons; the opening page of the Turkish text in a border and its title in a kufic inscription in an elaborately decorated panel; and a woodcut white-on-black Turkish inscription on the back of the main (German) title-page. Set in fraktur, Arabic and Greek types with incidental roman. The main Turkish text is bound at the end of the book, with the pages progressing from right to left like a normal Arabic book, so that the book can be opened from either side.With a modern index of ornithological, zoological and botanical names of animals and plants mentioned in the Turkish treatise, citing both the page and the chapter numbers, reproduced from manuscript. Later 19th-century half tanned sheepskin, sewn on 3 recessed cords (but with 5 false bands on the spine), title in gold in the 2nd of 6 spine compartments, marbled sides, endpapers printed in a Spanish-marbled style. With the publisher's original tinted lithographed wrappers bound in (printed in black with a blue tint-block), with a falcon on the front and back, the white silhouette of a falcon inside back and a white panel for an owner's name inside front. The modern index is separately bound in modern goatskin, marbled sides, designed to match the main volume. First printing in any language of three important manuscripts on falcons and falconry: a 12th-century Turkish treatise on falconry by Mahmud Ibn Mehmed al-Bargini, "Baz nama" ("Falcon book"), in the original Turkish and in German translation; the Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I's ca. 1515 (?) "Über die Falknerey" in the original German; and a shorter Greek treatise on hawking, "Hierakosophion" ("Hawking apprenticeship") in the original Greek and in German translation, a variant form of part of a 13th-century work by the Byzantine Emperor Michael VIII (1223-82). Little is known about the author of the Turkish treatise, but he came from Anatolia on the southeastern coast of what is now Turkey, where he apparently worked in service of the Bey of Mentese. He cites another work from 597 AH (1200/01 CE). - Hammer-Purgstall (1774-1856), a leading Austrian orientalist with an extensive knowledge of languages, took up a diplomatic position at the Austrian embassy in Constantinople in 1799 and remained in Turkey and the Middle East until 1807. He found the Turkish manuscript on falconry at the Biblioteca Ambrosiana in Milan in 1825 and the other two manuscripts at the Hofbibliothek in Vienna. He not only translated and edited the present texts but also contributed a 32-page introduction and a list of 63 works on the subject of falconry, from the 15th century to his own day. The book, printed in only 300 copies, has been largely overlooked in the literature on ornithology and Islamitica, but Schwerdt notes that it is "particularly important to lovers of falconry, its origin and history". It also provides insights into the Turkish language and Islamic culture. Although published in what is now Budapest, it was printed in Vienna. The printing office had its own typefoundry, stocked with matrices for various non-Latin types, giving the book a special typographic interest as well. The decoration on the Turkish title-page departs from Islamic tradition by incorporating pictorial images of three falcons. The book collates: frontispiece + [pi]4 a-b8 [c]1 [= 84] 1-78 84 (-84); 2[1]8 2-68 = 128 ff., with the second series of numbered quires (containing the Turkish text) progressing from right to left. - With some modern pencil notes on the flyleaf and in the margins. Somewhat foxed throughout, as usual, but otherwise in very good condition and nearly untrimmed, preserving many deckles and point holes and with most bolts in the main Turkish text unopened. The original publisher's illustrated wrappers, rarely preserved, show a few small chips, tears and scrapes but are still in good condition. The binding is chipped at the foot of the spine and slightly worn, but still generally good. First edition (in Turkish and German) of an important 13th-century Turkish treatise on falconry, with the publisher's illustrated wrappers bound in. Harting 112. Jahrbücher der Literatur XCIX (1842), pp. 59-62. Wolfgang Menzel, in: Literaturblatt XCI (9 September 1840), pp. 361-362. Schwerdt I, 228. Not in Anker; Atabey; Ayer; Blackmer; Nissen; Strong.
Folio (221 x 352 mm). 5 parts in 1 vol. (10), 120, 192, 160 (but: 156), 288 (but: 388), (4), 115, (1) pp. (without 4 ff. of index). With engraved t. p., 26 double-page-sized engravings (mostly folding), 3 folding engr. maps, 3 folding woodcut plates, and numerous text engravings. Marbled pastedowns. Contemp. calf. A complete copy of the first edition, noted for its illustrations, half of which are devoted to the Islamic World. This exceptionally wide-ranging collection of politics and travel reports, anecdotes, scientific discoveries, and experiments is a testament to Happel's shrewd journalistic understanding of popular taste. The woodcuts constitute the principal work of Thomas Wiering (cf. Thieme/Becker XXXV, 537). "Has special interest for the American collector, as it consists of a series of 15 curious representations of the aborigines of America, all with detailed descriptions of their manners, customs, religion" (Sabin). Mainly concerned with the Turkish Wars in Europe (and also mentions the campaigns in southern Greece from 1684 to 1688). "The last part of the work is of particular interest in that it contains the first complete transcription of the Qu'ran into German language" (Koc, 164). - Engraved title page shows ink censorship to pudenda of allegorical figure; four-line ms. inscription (dated 1690). Several plates trimmed closely or remargined (occasional slight loss to image). Formerly in the Ottoman collection of the Swiss industrialist Herry W. Schaefer. VD 17, 39:131766W (citing 25 plates and 2 engr. maps). Ömer Koc Collction, I, 92 (pp. 163-173). STC H 315. Dünnhaupt 15.1. Borba de Moraes 393. Hayn/Gotendorf III, 84. Jantz 1291. Alden 688/117. Sturminger 1464. Sabin 30279. Graesse III, 208.
Square 4to (250 × 260 mm). With the frontispiece in three states: a lithographed plate, a hand-coloured miniature painting on vellum, highlighted with gold, and an engraved plate; and with the half-title printed in blue and several words in the text printed in green and blue. Original green cloth. One of six copies (numbered 4) of a sumptuous publication of poems on Islam by the French poet, writer and publisher Maurice Heine (1884-1940). The entire edition consists of 77 copies, of which only the first six (numbered 1-6) were printed on dyed Japanese paper and included the frontispiece in three states, of which one painted and highlighted with gold on parchment. The frontispiece, an Arabic text surrounded by flowers, was designed and drawn by the Algerian miniature painter Mohammed Racim (1896-1975), founder of the Algerian school of miniature painting that still exists. The included poems are: La demeure harmonieuse; Dans la maison moresque; Palais d'Islam; Le voyage en faience; Le cyprès; Alger-aux-barbares; and La mort d'Alger. The work opens with a half-title printed in blue, followed by a blank leaf, a leaf with the privilege, another half-title, three frontispieces, the title-page, and a dedication, followed by the prologue and the seven poems. It closes with a colophon, mentioning the different copies of the book. Below the colophon is the print number: "Exemplaire no. 4. Imprimé pour le docteur Pierre Astruc". - With a presentation inscription to Pierre Astruc: "à Pierre Astruc, avec toute l'affection de ton ami dévoué, Maurice Heine". In very good condition. C. Tailliart, L'Algérie dans la littérature française 123. WorldCat (3 copies).
Folio (422 x 522 mm). (8), 34 pp., 20 tables (3 double-sided, 1 coloured) and 9 illustrations within the text. Leaves and plates stored loosely in original decorated dark green cloth portfolio. First edition of this fundamental work on the Sultan Hassan mosque in Cairo, built in 1356/59 during the Mamluk era. One of the largest mosques in the world, it is famous not only for its sheer size, but also for its monumental portal, itself a work of art. - Herz (1856-1919), born a Hungarian in Arad County and trained as an architect in Budapest and Vienna, joined the Technical Office of the Egyptian Ministry of Culture in 1882. In 188 he was made head architect of the Cairo "Comité de conservation des monuments de l'art arabe" and head conservator of Arabic monuments at the Egyptian ministry for religious foundations (waqf). His hopes that the publication of the monograph would lead to a commission for restoring the mosque were not to be fulfilled. - Occasional minor edge flaws, but well preserved. Rare: a single copy on the market since 1975. OCLC 7065880.
Folio (301 x 220 mm). (14 [including final blank]), 320 ff. (without the two final leaves cited by Edit 16 but not required by Durling). Title printed in red and black with woodcut device. Modern full vellum on 3 raised bands. Well-produced reissue of the 1560 first edition of this commentary to the 4th Fen of Book 1 of Avicenna's "Qanun", by the Bologna professor of logics and medicine, A. M. Betti (1480-1562). This part, the text of which is provided in full, is dedicated to general therapy, a staple of the compulsory teaching matter at mediaeval and Renaissance medical schools, if not one of the chapters most frequently to engender extensive published commentaries. Indeed, Avicenna's systematic "Canon of Medicine", written in Arabic but widely translated throughout the Middle Ages, remained the basis of medical training in the West until the latter half of the 16th century, when it gradually began to fall out of the syllabus at most European universities, not disappearing entirely until the mid-17th century. It continues in use to this day in parts of the Arab world. Through this encyclopedic work, the author exerted "perhaps a wider influence in the eastern and western hemispheres than any other Islamic thinker" (PMM). - A single edge flaw to fol. 263 (remargined by an earlier owner). A good, wide-margined copy showing minimal browning, rebound in contemporary style. Edit 16, CNCE 5658. Durling 401. Adams B 844. Not in BM-STC Italian or Wellcome.
Large 8vo (190 x 287 mm). Arabic manuscript on polished paper. 233 leaves. Naskh script in black and occasionally red ink, 15 lines with extensive glosses in the margins and several interleaved smaller sheets of commentary (some bound, others loose, including a few diagrammatic illustrations). Contemporary full leather binding with blind-tooled green corner pieces and central medaillon. Mid-19th century manuscript, written in Arabic in the Persian countries, of the first of the five books that form what is perhaps the most important medical text of the Middle Ages. - Ibn Sina's "Kitab al-Qanun fi'l-Tibb" ("Canon of Medicine"), hailed as "the most famous medical text ever written" (Garrison/M. 43), was widely translated throughout the Middle Ages and formed the basis of medical training in the West as late as the mid-17th century. Completed in 1025, the Qanun is divided into five books, of which the first, also called "al-Kulliyat", concerns general medical principles. It often circulated separately from the rest of the encyclopedia. The remaining four parts are devoted to simple drugs, pathology, diseases affecting the body as a whole, and recipes for compound remedies. - Ibn Sina (ca. 980-1037), known in the Western tradition as Avicenna, was physician to the ruling caliphs. The influence of his Qanun can hardly be overestimated. Translated into Latin in the 12th century, it became a standard textbook of Galenic medicine, influencing many generations of physicians. - Binding rubbed, sewing loosened, but generally well preserved. GAL I, 457 (597), 82.
4to. (2), 60 pp. Modern contemporary-style ivory vellum, handwritten title on spine. Extremely rare first edition of this valuable Persian grammar printed in Rome on the presses of the "Propaganda Fide". The third work of this kind, preceded only by those of Louis de Dieu (Leiden 1639) and of Greaves (London 1649). Willems notes that G. B. Raimondi, as early as 1614, produced a grammar in Rome for the use of missionaries which remained virtually unknown in the west, but this existed only in manuscript. The grammars of Greaves and of the present author were both "largely based on De Dieu" (Smitskamp). - Ignazio di Gesù (Carlo Leonelli) was a 17th century Italian missionary. He "belonged to the Order of Discalced Carmelites, and preached the Gospel in Turkey, Asia Minor, Armenia, and Persia, where he stayed over a long period. He especially tried to convert to the Catholic faith the so-called sectarians of Saint John (in eastern Mendaï). He returned to Rome in 1650" (cf. Hoefer). An account of his travels was included in the collection of Thevenot. His present small work, though not the work of an orientalist nor indeed a scholar, is still a true grammar based on elements collected during the author's journeys. - Some light foxing and browning as common, slight abrasion on title (vignette very slightly affected), lacks final blank leaf. Old library shelfmark in ink to title. A very good copy. Brunet III, 405. Schwab 863. Smitskamp 310 c.
Large 4to. (2), 60 pp., final blank leaf. Near-contemporary blue wrappers. Extremely rare first edition of this valuable Persian grammar printed in Rome on the presses of the "Propaganda Fide". The third work of this kind, preceded only by those of Louis de Dieu (Leiden 1639) and of Greaves (London 1649). Willems notes that G. B. Raimondi, as early as 1614, produced a grammar in Rome for the use of missionaries which remained virtually unknown in the west, but this existed only in manuscript. The grammars of Greaves and of the present author were both "largely based on De Dieu" (Smitskamp). - Ignazio di Gesù (Carlo Leonelli) was a 17th century Italian missionary. He "belonged to the Order of Discalced Carmelites, and preached the Gospel in Turkey, Asia Minor, Armenia, and Persia, where he stayed over a long period. He especially tried to convert to the Catholic faith the so-called sectarians of Saint John (in eastern Mendaï). He returned to Rome in 1650" (cf. Hoefer). An account of his travels was included in the collection of Thevenot. His present small work, though not the work of an orientalist nor indeed a scholar, is still a true grammar based on elements collected during the author's journeys. - Some browning as common, otherwise a very good, untrimmed, wide-margined copy as issued. Brunet III, 405. Schwab 863. Smitskamp 310 c.
Folio. 4 tinted lithographs drawn and lithographed from photographs taken by A. A. Isaacs. Original printed wrappers. First edition. A very scarce depiction of the great mosques of Jerusalem. The views are: "General View of the Great Mosque of the Sakara", "The Mosque of the Sakara and Judgement-Seat of David", "Facade of the Mosque El Aksa", and "The Marble Pulpit and Colonnades". The wrapper states that these are the first published views of the Mosques. - Lithographs lightly foxed, spine repaired. An excellent copy. Not in Abbey or Tobler.
Folio (210 x 310 mm). 2 vols. (5), 650 pp. (2), 764 pp. Text printed within rules, typographic headpieces. Contemporary Islamic brown goatskin with fore-edge flap, boards stamped in silver ornamental borders and central arabesque, flap with ornamental rule. Uncommon second edition of this classic Arabic dictionary, al-Jawhari's "Tag al-luga was-sihah al-'arabiya" (The Crown of Language and the Correctness of Arabic), translated into Turkish by Muhammad al-Wani (d. 1592), deriving its title from the Turkish genitive form of the author’s name, Wangulu or Vankulu. - Jawhari himself reached only the letter Dad before he died in an unsuccessful attempt at human flight from the roof of a mosque in 1003 AD (the work was subsequently completed by his student Ishaq Ibrahim bin Salih al-Warraq). To this day the dictionary remains an indispensable companion of Arabic philologists in both the East and the West; "manuscripts are to be found in almost every library" (Brockelmann). "In this great dictionary [the author] codified pure Arabic as based on the criticism of his predecessors' preparatory studies as well as his own experiences and collections. The 'As-sihâh’ is arranged in an alphabetical order, according to the final, and not the first, rooter of the words [...] This system, which was later adopted by other large Arabic dictionaries, attempts to supply those in search of rhyming words with a handbook" (Goldziher, A Short History of Classical Arabic Literature, 1966, p. 70). - Dampstains at end of vol. I and intermittently to vol. II, minor staining to fore-edge. A few scuffs and rubs to binding, but a sound and imposing set, generally clean internally. - Provenance: from the library of the British diplomat and linguist Sir Gore Ouseley (1770-1844), first baronet, with his contemporary signature to the front flyleaf of each volume. Ousely travelled to India in 1787 and established a cloth factory. He lived a relatively solitary existence and spent his leisure time studying Persian, Bengalese Hindi, Arabic, and Sanskrit, becoming an elegant speaker and writer of Persian. An acquaintance of the oriental scholar Sir William Jones, Ouseley was named ambassador extraordinary to the court of Fath Ali Shah in Persia in 1810, negotiated several treaties, and returned to England. He was one of those responsible for the founding of the Royal Asiatic Society in London in 1823 and was associated with the formation of the oriental translation committee, of which he was elected chairman. He became president of the Society for the Publication of Oriental Texts, formed in 1842. Özege 22504. OCLC 773846601 (a single copy, BnF). Cf. GAL I, 128.
4to (152 x 220 mm). 2 (instead of 7), 97 ff. (last two leaves mutilated; plus a fragment of the 5th leaf of prelims). Contemporary calf binding; papered spine with typed leather spine label; some loss to lower cover. The third book printed by Ibrahim Müteferrika: a contemporary history of the Afghan-Persian wars of the Safavid era that led to the fall of the Safavid dynasty and the Afghan occupation of Iran. This is the Ottoman Turkish translation of a work by the Polish Jesuit Judasz Tadeus Krusinski, who lived in the royal capital of Isfahan from 1707 to 1725/28, acting as an intermediary between the Papacy and the Iranian court as well as a court translator. Proficient in Persian and well acquainted with the nation and its people, he was a first-hand witness to the sack of the city by the rebellious Afghans in 1722, and his account makes him an important primary source on this particular period of the Safavid era. - Browned, fingerstained and waterstained throughout, several waqf marks; various edge tears and small chips. Lacks the first five leaves of the preliminaries (save for a fragment of the fifth); loss to upper edge of f. 33 (first line) and ff. 96-97 (several lines at the bottom of the page). Zenker 929. Özege 19897. De Backer/Sommervogel IV, 1264. Brunet III, 190. Ebert 4844 (note). Toderini III, p. 34, no. III.
8vo. (16), 256 pp. Contemporary limp vellum. Traces of ties. Rare, early introduction to and grammar of the Arabic language: a compilation based on Arab sources by the Syrian Jesuit Metoscita. "The work again contains laudatory poems in four languages by Donatus. It is dedicated by the publisher Paulinus to Cardinal Francesco Barberini, who as Curator of the Sacra Congregatio had ordered its publication. Paulinus had already recently published two other Arabic grammars in Rome, a large one by Martelotti (1620) and a small one by Scialac (1622). The author, Petrus Al-Matusi, was one of the first pupils of the Maronite College in Rome [...] On p. 227 of the grammar we find one of the first examples of a classical Arabic poem quoted and translated [...] The work is excellently printed with the 16pt Arabic types of Savary de Brèves. At the end a grammatical analysis of Psalm 34 is given following the example of Bellarmino's Hebrew grammar" (Smitskamp). "After the demise of the Medici Oriental Press, Arabic printing in Rome was revived by the French scholar-diplomat François Savary de Brèves, who commissioned the design and production of an Arabic fount of an outstanding elegance and beauty. Much has been written on this type-face, which was evidently based directly on Arab or Turkish specimens of calligraphy acquired by Savary while serving in the Ottoman Empire: the punch-cutting, however, was probably executed in Rome [...] This celebrated type-face, which later passed to the Imprimerie Royale, was the mainstay of Arabic typography in France until the late 19th century [...] It likewise influenced the Arabic founts of the Press of the Sacra Congregatio de Propaganda Fide, which had a monopoly of Arabic printing in Rome from 1622 onwards, and at first employed Paulin, the former associate of both Raimondi and Savary de Brèves" (Roper, p. 144-146). - Slight browning and brownstaining throughout due to paper; 18th or early 19th century marginalia and notes on flyleaves; ownership "J. Venturi" to title page. Fück 77. Schnurrer 59. Smitskamp, PO 190. De Backer/Sommervogel V, 1028. Bibliothèque de Silvestre de Sacy II, 2772 (lacking 1 leaf). Not in Vater/Jülg. Cf. G. Roper, Early Arabic Printing in Europe, in: Middle Eastern Languages and the Print Revolution. A Cross-Cultural Encounter (Westhofen 2002), pp. 129-150.
Coloured. Two sheets conjoined, total 610 x 1010 mm. Restoration to binding folds and tears. Moll's large-format map of the Turkish Empire based on De l'Isle, also covering the whole of the Mediterranean, first published in 1714. The caravan route from Basra to Mecca is also given. Includes inset prospects of Constantinople, Smyrna and Jerusalem, and three views of the Holy Sepulchre. A note engraved in the area of the Arabian desert south of today's United Arab Emirates contains a pointed editorial critique of Ottoman rule in Arabia: "The Turks oppress the Arabians with Tribute, and Govern 'em with great Cruelty, which has made them several times attempt to throw off their Yoke, but in Vain: Those of Arabia Felix are kept in Awe by the Turkish Gallies on the Red Sea; and those of the other Arabia's not being able to subsist in their barren Countries have spread themselves into the mountanous parts of Syria and the Desarts of Barbary, Barca &c. where they live by Rapine in the Neighboring Countries, and plundering Travellers." - Well preserved; an excellent, appealingly coloured specimen. Tibbets 202. Al-Qasimi (2nd ed.) p. 151.
Large 8vo. 2 vols. XV, (1), 334 pp. XIII, (3), 434 pp. With 2 (instead of 3) folding maps in rear-cover pockets and numerous illustrations in the text and on photo plates. Original illustrated green cloth. First edition of this rare travel account by the diplomat, archaeologist and orientalist Max Oppenheim (1860-1946), a work that made his name as an expert on the orient. With numerous, mainly photographic illustrations. - Bindings professionally restored; wants the large general map. Some slight browning; one map in vol. 2 loose with frayed edges. Henze III, 650ff. OCLC 13166400.
Folio (305 x 455 mm). 7 vols. All title pages printed in red and black. With engr. frontispiece, 7 engr. title vignettes, numerous engr. head- and tailpieces and initials, and 243 plates. Contemporary half calf; spine elaborated gilt with double giltstamped red labels. A perfectly preserved tall paper copy of this beautifully illustrated ethnographic work on the world's religions. Despite condemnation by the Catholic church, the publication was a resounding success. "'Ceremonies and customs' prepared the ground for religious toleration amid seemingly unending religious conflict, and demonstrated the impact of the global on Western consciousness [...] as it shaped the development of a modern, secular understanding of religion" (Hunt). - Based on the author's "Cérémonies et coutumes religieuses de tous les peuples du monde" (Amsterdam, 1723-1743), the text is corrected (and sometimes entirely revised) from the original edition. The plates are mostly repeated from the Dutch publication, but the vignettes are engraved in Paris (by Duflos and others). Also contains descriptions of irreligious customs, such as the Adamites, Flagellants, etc. - Bindings a little rubbed, a bit browned in places, otherwise an excellent and unusually wide-margined complete copy in uniform bindings with elaborately gilt spines. Brunet I, 1743. Graesse II, 104. Cf. L. Hunt, The Book That Changed Europe: Picart & Bernard's Religious Ceremonies Of The World (Harvard UP, 2010). Lipperheide Oc 24. Hiler 708. Cohen/R. 134. Sander 1548. Lewine 414.
4to. 3 parts in 1 vol. Title-page printed in red and black. With 3 woodcut title vignettes (including one showing a camel). (8) ff. (incl. final blank), 123, (1) pp. (2), 161, (1) pp., 1 bl. f. 176, (6) pp. Contemporary blindstamped brown calf with 2 clasps. Rare second edition, printed in the year of the first edition: a German description of a three-year journey to Palestine and the Near East by the botanist Rauwolf (1535-96), with many authentic and reliable observations, also about the people and customs and of the difficulties of travel. His description of the preparation of coffee in Aleppo was the first such report by a European. "Highly influential travel account by the learned Augsburg physician and botanist who journeyed to Jerusalem in the years 1573 to 1576. The 8th chapter of part I contains the celebrated descriptions of the coffee drink and of the coffee berry [...] Rauwolf's account of coffee as a social drink of the East is thought to be the earliest in a printed book" (Hünersdorff/H. II, 1221). "Rauwolf [...] made a hazardous journey in many parts of the East to collect foreign plants; his herbarium is now carefully preserved at the Rijksherbarium in Leiden" (Hunt 146). "He was the first modern botanist to collect and describe the flora of the regions east of the Levantine coast" (Norman). An illustrated edition expanded by a fourth part was published at Lauingen the following year. - Binding professionally repaired at extremeties. Title page remargined, showing some fingerstaining; occasional slight brown- and waterstaining; a few contemporary marginalia near the end. VD 16, ZV 12969. Adams R 188. Pritzel 7430. Cf. Norman 1782. Not in BM-STC German.
Small 8vo (143 x 110 mm). 32 ff. of sketches in coloured chalk pastels and charcoal on bluish-grey laid paper. Contemp. half cloth. Contains 19 pp. of sketches showing the Keferloh horse market (some dated September 14), the others mostly showing landscape views from the environs of Munich (captioned Herrsching, Großhesselohe, Grünwald, Solln, Karlsfeld, Allach etc.). Inside front cover has Röhm's autograph name and address in pencil. - The painter, etcher, and lithographer Röhm studied at Nuremberg and the Munich Academy (1898-1902) with Wilhelm von Diez war. In 1927 he became professor in Munich (cf. Thieme/Becker and Nürnberger Künstlerlexikon). - The Keferloh horse market (known as "Keferloher Montag") was the largest of its kind in the German Reich until the Second World War. - Binding somewhat stained and rubbed; interior very well preserved.
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.
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.
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.
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.
4to (178 x 240 mm). Arabic manuscript on paper. (136) pp. Calligraphic text with cursive writing in red ink, black and gold in a frame of double red rules, 15-23 lines, frontispiece on double page, 4 banners. Contemporary blindstamped red morocco binding with fore-edge flap. Arabic manuscript on the virtue of prayer upon the Prophet Muhammad. The very neat cursive calligraphy is finely executed in three inks: black, red and gold (the latter having taken on an olive green hue). The manuscript begins with the last three suras of the Qur'an, followed by the Asma ul-Husna, an introduction, and a prayer. A superb frontispiece on a double page (pp. 5-6) is executed in black ink on a red background within polychrome frames. The one on the right-hand side, decorated with five outward-facing arches in the margins, gives the names of Allah, of the Prophet, and of his four caliphs; the panel on the left indicates the name of the manuscript and its author, "Abi Abdallah Hashim ibn Abdulaziz al-Mohammadi al-Shafei". The titles of each of the six chapters are written in red ink or gold, followed by the "Bismillah" in larger calligraphy. The first colophon, at the end of the first chapter, is calligraphed in red ink in a banner; the other three colophons, arranged within triangular tiers, announce the end of each chapter and repeat the name of the author. The text ends with the "Qasida" to the glory of the Prophet. The analysis of the document and the use of the term "Shafei" suggest that its author was an imam trained in the Shafiist school of jurisprudence, one of four schools (madhhab) of jurisprudence within Sunni Islam, based on the teaching of Imam Al-Shafi'i (767-820) and his followers. This "madhhab" is widespread in Yemen and around the Horn of Africa (Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Somalia), as well as in Kurdistan and Egypt. Binding and paper suggest a date in the second half of the 18th century.
4to (164 x 244 mm). Persian manuscript on polished but unsophisticated laid paper. 352 leaves (misnumbered 347, numerous errors in pagination, but complete). 21 lines of black and occasional red Nast'aliq within blue and double red rules; a pretty gilt, red and lapislazuli 'unwan headpiece on the first page. Some marginal glosses throughout, likewise in black and red ink. 19th century Western-style codex binding with leather spine and cloth edges, using the original red morocco covers. An amplified Persian adaptation of the Arabic medical treatise "Sharh al-asbab" (completed in 1424) by the Persian physician Burhan addin Nafis ibn 'Iwaz al-Kirmani (d. ca. 1449), itself a commentary on Najib addin al-Samarqandi's (d. 619/1222) "Kitab al-asbab wa'l-'alamat". This medical compendium, later translated into Urdu and Sindhi, covers the symptoms and treatment of diseases specific to particular parts as well as general diseases. - The Indian medical writer Mohammad Akbar Arzani composed several works in Persian which circulated also through various Urdu translations and thus gained considerable diffusion among later physicians. "According to his own statement in the 'Tibb-i akbari', he had been a recluse in a convent (zawia), later on he studied the religious doctrines and finally dedicated himself to the study of medicine. He probably took part in the Mughal military campaign in the Deccan under Awrangzeb" (Encyclopedia Iranica, online). - Inherently brittle and fragile throughout with numerous edge tears, chips, marginal worming and other minor flaws, several paper breaks due to ink corrosion along the rules. One quire loosened, two leaves have old repairs with adhesive tape. Foliation erratic; leaf 196 (recte: 206) transposed before 194, but complete. Cf. GAL I, 491 & S I, 895 (for Nafis ibn 'Iwaz al-Kirmani's commentary).
Folio. 2 parts in one volume. (12), 843, (112) pp. (4), 282, (8) pp. Title printed in red and black with engraved vignette showing arms of Louis XIII. Double-column text in Greek and Latin. Finely engraved head- and tail-pieces and large inhabited initials throughout. Contemporary English vellum gilt, panelled sides with two double-rule borders enclosing a four-part fan motif centrepiece and surrounded by fan motif cornerpieces, flat spine gilt with foliate motifs and small tools. Enlarged and corrected second edition ("much more accurate and splendid than the first", says Dibdin) of Strabo’s "Geography", one of the earliest and most important scientific treatises of historical geography. Contains the Greek text beside Xylander's Latin translation, with commentaries by Frédéric Morel and Isaac Casaubon. Together with the works of Ptolemy and Solinus, Strabo's "Geography" constitutes the first attempt at a unified treatise of geographical knowledge. Strabo had visited Egypt and sailed up the Nile in 25 BC. Even in the introductory chapters, the author provides important details on the Arabian Peninsula: "Adjoining the Ethiopians, a needy and nomad race, is Arabia: one part of which is distinguished above all other lands by the title of Felix [i.e., Hedjaz and Nejd-ed-Ared], and the other, though not dignified by that name, is both generally believed and also said to be pre-eminently blessed. Though Homer knew of Arabia Felix, at that time it was by no means wealthy, but a wild country, the inhabitants of which dwelt for the most part in tents. It is only a small district which produces the aromatics from which the whole territory afterwards received its name, owing to the rarity of the commodity amongst us, and the value set upon it. That the Arabians are now flourishing and wealthy is due to their vast and extended trade" (bk. 1, p. 39); "Arabia Felix is bounded by the entire Arabian and Persian Gulfs, together with all the country of the tent-dwellers and the Sheikh-governed tribes. [...] Beside the ocean the country is tolerably fitted for habitation of man, but not so the centre of the country: this for the most part is barren, rugged sand desert. The same applies to the country of the Troglodytic Arabians and the part occupied by the fish-eating tribes" (bk. 2, p. 130f.) Furthermore, books 15 and 16 are devoted entirely to the Orient (bk. 16 is on Arabia in particular), while the final book 17 discusses Egypt and Libya. - With 19th c. bookplate of Richard Newcome, and later label of Viscount Mersey, Bignor Park, on the front free endpaper. Short marginal tear and a crease to the titlepage, single minute wormhole in the inner margin through the first half of the text block; a very good copy. Brunet V, 554. Graesse VII, 604. Schweiger I, 303. Hoffmann III, 454. Dibdin II, 433. Moss II, 620f. Ebert 21809.
8vo. 29, (1) pp. With one lithographed folding map. Contemporary giltstamped full calf bearing the tughra of Sultan Abdul Hamid II. Leading edges gilt. Endpapers with golden floral pattern. All edges gilt. First and sole edition of this historical study of the "March of the Ten Thousand", the retreat of Greek mercenaries immortalized in Xenophon's "Anabasis". The author retraces the soldiers' marching route, drawing on his own experience after having spent several years in Armenia. The map shows a portion of Higher Armenia with the author's own route, as well as that given by Xenophon. Strecker, a former Prussian artillery lieutenant, entered Ottoman service in 1854 and was appointed governor of Bulgaria's Vidin region from 1864 to 1865, when he was known as "Reshid Pascha". In later sources he also appears as a leader of the Ottoman militia, going by the name of "Strecker Pascha". - Spine slightly rubbed, title-page slightly foxed, with traces of a paper label to verso. Inscribed to Sultan Abdul Hamid II and signed in Ottoman Turkish by Strecker (as "Reshid Pasha") on verso of flyleaf, opposite the title. - From the library of Sultan Abdul Hamid II (1842-1918), the last Sultan of the Ottoman Empire to exert effective contol over the fracturing state and also remembered as a poet, translator and one of the dynasty's greatest bibliophiles. While his passion for books is memorialized by the many precious donations he gave to libraries all over the world and which mostly have remained intact to this day (including the 400-volume "Abdul-Hamid II Collection of Books and Serials" gifted to the Library of Congress), his own library was dispersed in the years following his deposition in 1909: books were removed to other palaces and even sold to Western collectors, the greatest part of his collection is today preserved in the Chester Beatty Library in Dublin. H. Rohrbacher, Georgien. Bibliographie des deutschsprachigen Schrifttums (Wiesbaden 2008), 902.
