Lokman.MareMagnum
4 134 résultats
4to. 60, (2) pp. Woodcut vignette to title. Text in Latin and Arabic. Early 19th century boards covered with blue brocade paper. Second edition, following Erpenius's 1615 editio princeps. - Lokman was a legendary sage of the pre-Muhammedanian era, occasionally said to have been king of Yemen, a prophet, or an Abessinian slave. This late 13th-c. adaptation of a Syrian translation of Aesop's Fables was attached to his name. Since their first publication in Europe in 1615, the "Fables" constitute an obligatory passage for learning Arabic, which explains the proliferation of versions (including those for school use). The collection was edited by Thomas Erpenius (1584-1624), professor of oriental languages at Leiden. In 1613, after his return from Paris, he set up a private press with types cut specially for him. - Some fingerstaining, waterstaining and duststaining; lower corner of t. p. torn off (no loss to text); an early student's pen scribblings on title page, and a later owner's pencil notes in Arabic in margins and on final flyleaf. Zenker I, 627. Schnurrer 220. Landwehr F137. OCLC 85371352. Cf. Fück 65f.
8vo. 19, (1), 22, (2) pp. Contemporary grey wrappers. First Arabic edition. "Silvestre de Sacy translated the Last Will and Testament of Louis XVI into Arabic and had the translation printed together with the French original in 1820, in hopes that it might prove a comfort and encouragement to the Christians of the Orient, while giving Muslim readers a demonstration of Christian submission and evangelical meekness" (cf. Fück). Three years previously, de Sacy had published the late King's Testament (together with the last letter of Marie Antoinette) in a luxurious folio edition. "Sacy never let his Christian convictions hamper his work as a scholar, for he saw religion as a personal matter. Although he revealed his faith at times, it was never to pose it as the strongest model against which to judge other religions. He was nevertheless very pious. There is no other way to explain his translation of the guillotined king, Louis XVI, into Arabic [...]. He apparently wished to show how devout, simple and charitable his beloved monarch had been" (Kamal as-Salibi, The Druze [London 2005], p. 20). - The orientalist de Sacy, a monumental figure in the development of oriental studies in France, began his career as professor of Arabic at the École des Langues Orientales Vivantes in 1796. In 1806 he was offered the chair of Persian at the College of France and in 1824 was appointed director of the school of oriental languages. He also acted as advisor to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, translating political propaganda into Arabic, including the "Bulletins of the Grande Armée" (cf. Atabey 1134). - An excellent, untrimmed and wide-margined copy in mint condition, printed on strong paper, the central counter-leaf remaining uncut. Fück 144 (note 377). Bibliothèque de Sacy III, 4781f. OCLC 25217438.
Folio (225 x 332 mm). 2 parts in one vol. (12), 143, (1) pp. (6) pp., 1 blank f., 96 pp. With printer's woodcut device to both title-pages. Contemporary half vellum over papered boards with faded handwritten spine title. Second edition of this "at least linguistically rather unusual combination of a Georgian and a Turkish grammar, using the Georgian types first displayed in 1629" (Smitskamp). This is "an almost line for line reprint of the 1643 edition, only distinguishable by the 'Iterum imprimatur' [...] The work is set in mkhedruli type that has no upper case, but upper and lower case khutsuri type (the sacred script) is also displayed, absent in the 1629 'Alphabetum'. In the second part, containing a Turkish grammar (the third of its kind, after those by Megiser [1612] and du Ryer [1630]), the Hebrew and Syriac scripts [...] are also discussed as vehicles of the Arabic or Turkish language. Maggio mentions della Valle as his instructor in Turkish [...] At the end of the second part a Turkish translation is printed of the 'Corolla B.M. Virginis', a widely used devotional prayer" (ibid.). - Binding lightly rubbed. Some browning throughout; occasional worming in the margins. A few contemporary ink corrections in Georgian script. Removed from the library of the Capuchin mission to Trabzon, Turkey (Missione dei Cappuccini di Trebisonda) with their stamp to the title-page. Smitskamp, PO 227. Lang 167. Vater/Jülg 140.
4to. (8), 9-44, 332 pp. - (Bound with) II: Ibn 'Arabshah, Ahmad ibn Muhammad / Vattier, Pierre (transl.). L'histoire du grand Tamerlan divisée en sept livres. Ibid., 1658. (24), 248, (4) pp. - (And) III: The same. Portrait du grand Tamerlan, avec la suite de son histoire iusques à l'establissement de l'Empire du Mogol. Paris, Vattier, Augustin Courbé & Jean Huart, 1658. (8), 146, (2). Contemporary vellum. All edges sprinkled in red. A milestone of French Arabist scholarship in the 17th century. I: First French edition of the "General History of the World" ("Kitab al-Magmu' al-mubarak") by Girgis al-Makin ibn al-'Amid, known in the Latin tradition as Georgius Elmacinus. Born in Cairo in 602 AH (1205 AD) to a Coptic civil servant in the War Ministry, he later served in a similar function in Syria. His chronicle had previously been translated into Latin (by Erpenius) and English (by Purchas); the work "for the first time provided wider circles in the west with an overview of Islamic history from its beginnings to the Crusades and acquainted them with the prime of the Baghdad Califate, previously almost unreceived, through an account ultimately based on Tabari" (cf. Fück). - II/III: First French translation (issued in two parts) of this important critical, at times even satirical eyewitness account of the life of Tamerlane (Timur Lenk), the great Turkish conqueror of the 14th century. "A frequently malicious account, in spite of the panegyrical form in which it is couched" (cf. GAL). Based on the original Arabic text written in 1437-38 by the Syrian author Ahmad lbn 'Arabshah who was secretary to Sultan Ahmad of Baghdad. In the late 16th century Timur was made famous in Europe through Christopher Marlowe's play "Tamburlaine" (published in 1590). The 17th century Western translations of Ibn Arabshah's work "for the first time acquainted the occident with a model of Arabic rhyming prose which also had the power to captivate the reader by its subject, as well as with the elaborate rhetorical style so characteristic of the literary taste of the Orient" (cf. Fück). Pierre Vattier (1623-67), physician to the Duke of Orleans, was the author of several treatises and translations on various aspects of Middle Eastern or Muslim culture. - Some browning and occasional inkstaining throughout. Top spine-end repaired. A good copy. The Macclesfield copy commanded £3,400 at Sotheby's in 2008. I: GAL I, 348. Schnurrer, p. 115, no. 155. Gay 3568. Fück 73. Aboussouan 449 ("1558" in error). OCLC 1811219. - II/III: GAL II, 29. Schnurrer, p. 137, no. 167. Fück 82. OCLC 29069177/29069426.
Folio (245 x 326 mm). 202 pp. Arabic manuscript written in Ruq'ah script. Single column, 11 lines, with extensive glosses above, outside, and interlinear. Black ink, emphases (name of Allah) in red. An annotated sketch of the Kaaba on one page; occasional small ornaments. Contemporary blind-stamped decorated binding. An early 19th century summary of the principles and tenets of the Shafi'i school of Sunni Islam, as laid down by Al-Shafi'i in the 9th century, with extensive examples, written in six parts (with a total of 44 chapters) on Taharah (purity), Salah (prayer), Funeral, Zakat (alms), Fasting, and the Hajj. The glosses comprise verses from the Qur'an, hadiths, prayers, instructional matter, and brief naratives. - Contents: the book of Taharah (purity) discusses the rules of cleanliness, with chapters on water (cleansing, ablution, washing the dead, tayammum), miswak (how and when to use water), wudu (detailed obligations), masah (wiping), how to use the toilet, recommended times for performing ghusl (full ablution), tayammum, najis (unclean foods), etc. - The book of Salah discusses the duty of prayer, prayer times, details of how to perform prayer, the duties of the Imam, the differences in prayer for men and women, how to dress, difference in private parts for men and women; circumstances that invalidate a prayer, etc. - The book of Funeral discusses how to treat the dead and dying, bathing and shrouding the deceased, the requirements and procedures of funeral prayer, burial, condolences and lamentations. - The book of Zakat (obligatory alms) discusses to whom and how zakat should be given, with the various types of zakat: money, land property, precious metals; but also zakat al-fitr (Breaking the Fast of Ramadan) and sadaqah (voluntary charity). - The book of Fasting discusses the duties of fasting, what those should do who cannot fast, and circumstances that invalidate the fast. - The book of Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca) distinguishes hajj (the major pilgrimage: fard, obligatory) and umrah (the minor pilgrimage: sunnah, traditional). Various chapters discuss the time of the hajj, Ihram (the sacred state into which a Muslim must enter in order to perform the pilgrimage), and a pilgrim's duties on the hajj. This part, perhaps the most striking point of the study, includes an annotated sketch of the Kaaba that indicates "The gate of the Kaaba", "The Rukn al-Yamani" (Yemeni Corner), "The Rukn al-'Iraqi" (Iraqi Corner), "The Hajar al-Aswad" (Black Stone), "Al Multazam" (a place where prayer is acceptable), "Maqam Ibrahim" (the station of the Prophet Abraham), "The Rukn ush-Shami" (Levantine Corner), and " The Shadherwaan" (a structure built to protect the foundation of the Kaaba from rain water). - Various notes on the first and last page of the manuscript: verses from the Qur'an at the beginning, according to tradition, and expressions of reverence for the Shafi'i scholar Imam al Haramayn (the master of the holy cities Mecca and Medina) at the end, also indicating the author of the work. Some leaves loosened; some edge flaws and brownstaining, mainly confined to the edges as margins; altogether very well preserved. Cf. Muhammad ibn Idris Shafi'i & Majid Khadduri. Islamic Jurisprudence: Shafi'i's Risala (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press, 1961).
Large 4to. 2 vols in one. (6), 56, 252 pp. (4), 315, (5) pp. (pages 153-216 of part 2 transposed after p. 88). With 1 folding genealogical table and 25 engraved plates (6 folding), including maps, plans, costumes, views, and 2 showing Arabic text with vowel points, as well as 2 engraved headpieces. Contemporary full calf with giltstamped red spine label. Marbled endpapers. All edges sprinkled red. Third French edition (first published in German in Copenhagen, 1772). "Édition revue par de Guignes" (Gay). "Niebuhr (1713-1815) participated as astronomer and naturalist to the royal Danish expedition to Arabia in 1763-1767. Together with the naturalist Forskal, the philologist Van Haven and two others, he travelled up the Nile to Suez and Mount Sinai, and from there to Jeddah and Mocha. By the end of their stay in Mocha, all the memebers of the expedition but Niebuhr had died, and Niebuhr travelled on alone to India, returning via Persia, Syria, Cyprus, and Constantinople. The only surviving member of the hazardous expedition, he returned to an indifferent reception in Copenhagen [...] Niebuhr's comprehensive description, particularly of the Yemen region, was the best and most authentic of the day. Many subsequent travellers have acknowledged their debt to him, and only on a few minor points have they shown him to be in error. He was scientifically and philosophically minded, cautious and steady, and hardly the man to masquerade in Mekkah or wander with the Bedouins, but few contributed more solidly to the study of Arabia" (Atabey). - Extremeties a little bumped, hinges repaired. Occasional light browning or staining, more pronounced near beginning. Contemporary handwritten "Avis au Lecteur" bound before title-page, alerting the reader to the transposed quires in part 2. - Rare. Gay 3589. Howgego I, N24 (p. 752). Brunet IV, 74 (note). Cf. Atabey 873. Macro 1699. Not in Blackmer.
Large 4to (205 x 262 mm). 2 volumes. (6), 56, 252 pp. (4), 315, (5) pp. With 1 folding genealogical table and 25 engraved plates (many folding), including maps, plans, costumes, and views, 2 showing Arabic text with vowel points, as well as 2 engraved headpieces. Contemporary full marbled calf with giltstamped spines and red spine labels. Blue coloured endpapers. All edges red. Third French edition (first published in German in Copenhagen, 1772). "Édition revue par de Guignes" (Gay). "Niebuhr (1713-1815) participated as astronomer and naturalist to the royal Danish expedition to Arabia in 1763-1767. Together with the naturalist Forskal, the philologist Van Haven and two others, he travelled up the Nile to Suez and Mount Sinai, and from there to Jeddah and Mocha. By the end of their stay in Mocha, all the memebers of the expedition but Niebuhr had died, and Niebuhr travelled on alone to India, returning via Persia, Syria, Cyprus, and Constantinople. The only surviving member of the hazardous expedition, he returned to an indifferent reception in Copenhagen [...] Niebuhr's comprehensive description, particularly of the Yemen region, was the best and most authentic of the day. Many subsequent travellers have acknowledged their debt to him, and only on a few minor points have they shown him to be in error. He was scientifically and philosophically minded, cautious and steady, and hardly the man to masquerade in Mekkah or wander with the Bedouins, but few contributed more solidly to the study of Arabia" (Atabey). - Noticeable worming to gutter, sometimes touching text but loss to legibility (more extensive in vol. I), much of which professionally repaired. A few handwritten pencil annotations in the margin. Bindings professionally restored. Gay 3589. Howgego I, N24 (p. 752). Brunet IV, 74 (note). Cf. Atabey 873. Macro 1699. Not in Blackmer.
Oblong folio (450 x 336 mm). Letterpress title page (with extensive description on the reverse) and 4 engraved plates. Contemporary blank wrappers, stored in custom-made cardboard portfolio with giltstamped cover label. First edition. A fine series of four elaborately decorated Turkish horses, based on drawings prepared in Constantinople and sent to Ridinger by Baron Gudenus. As stated in the letter from Constantinople, dated 7 March 1741 and printed on the reverse of the title page, the Ottoman dignitaries could be distinguished by the various kinds of luxurious cloths, jewels, and finery they applied to their stables. The officials would vie with each other for the most splendid equestrian adornments, often showering their animals with gold and silver, diamonds, silk, and delicate embroideries. At a state reception in 1740, the Sultan was reported to have shown a parade of 30 horses, each covered in a different kind of precious stone. Such a horse laden with ornament, led into the seraglio by a Janissary, is pictured in plate I: four ostrich feathers adorn the head (a distinction afforded only to the Sultan's personal stable), while the chest bears a splendid rosette belt. Plate II shows a rising "Divani", such as is ridden by the Grand Vizier when dressed in state, with silver chains jingling from its halter and an embroidered blanket under the saddle. Plate III shows another Divani (titled "du coté gauche", but a rare variant imprint from front right), with different bridle and blanket; an elaborately tooled gilt thong is strapped across the chest. The final plate IV shows the "cheval de main d'un Pacha" besides a large kiosk, with a long blanket, rich silver and gemstone decoration and two leopard skins. - Some fingerstaining in the margins, but well preserved. Thienemann 594-597.
8vo. 36 ff., printed on rectos only. Original printed wrappers with oval portrait of the author in Arabic costume. Stapled. First edition, very rare. Extraordinary guide to the Kingdom of Hejaz, "the most frequented pilgrim country in the world" (f. 36). It comprises accounts of Jeddah and Mecca and includes a chapter on King Abd al-Aziz ibn Saud (1875-1953), "undoubtedly the strongest and ablest ruler Arabia has produced for many many years" (f. 29). - Describing the journey from Egypt across the Red Sea, the booklet discusses the travel documents required to enter Hejaz, as well as the enormous economic benefit of the pilgrimage to the Kingdom, and gives a report of the crossing from Suez to Jeddah including stops at El Tor, "the most attractive and beautiful of the Red Sea towns" (f. 11), Wedja and Yambo. It includes a description of the Mount Sinai monastery as well as the wrecked pilgrim ship "Asia", which caught fire in the Jeddah port in 1929. On the one hand deeming Jeddah "a place for work and no play" (p. 24), the guide laments the prohibition of alcohol, cigarettes and gramophones, as well as the lack of hotels, cafés, restaurants, cinemas, and fresh water, and criticises the general state of many houses in the city. On the other hand, the booklet admires the low crime rate of Hejaz as well as recent improvements in public transportation. An uncommonly frank account of a Westerner's stay in Hejaz, not hesitating to speak out on the hardships of pilgrimage. - Covers loosened; somewhat soiled. A few pages slightly wrinkled. Contemporary ownership inscribed to title-page in blue ballpoint. Not a single copy traceable in libraries worldwide.
4to. 2 vols. XXIV, 446, XXIII, (3) pp. VII, (1), 430, XXXIV, (26) pp. With engraved frontispiece and 20 numbered engraved plates (5 of which folded) on 19 sheets. Contemporary full calf with giltstamped spine labels. All edges red. Second edition of this authoritative account of Aleppo and Ottoman life and manners, based on Russell's experience as physician to the British factory in Aleppo from 1740 to 1753. Enlarged with 3 additional plates compared to the 1756 first edition. Includes an engraved frontispiece with a view of the city, a plan by Carsten Niebuhr (vol. I, plate I), and an additional plate showing fish (vol. II, plate VI). Apart from the Syrian flora and fauna as well as the local climate, Russell's monograph discusses the everyday life of the local population, including that of European merchants living in Aleppo, the organisation of their trade activity, and their social life. Also includes a section on the plague and other epidemic diseases in the 1740s. The descriptions of the education system, of the production of manuscripts, and of the commercial activity in Syria are unusually detailed and can be considered unique in contemporary travel literature on the Ottoman Empire (cf. Chatzipanagioti-Sangmeister). The botanical plates were produced by G. D. Ehret, and one plate of fish bears the name of W. Skelton, while the remainder of plates, including the ones depicting birds and domestic life, are unsigned, but were probably produced by Russell himself. - Binding lightly scuffed; interior fresh and extremely well preserved. A charmingly bound set documenting an era of scientific and economic prosperity in Syria. Blackmer 1458. Nissen BBI 3534. Navari 1458. Cox I, 227. Chatzipanagioti-Sangmeister 893. ESTC T149605. Cf. Atabey 1064 (1762 Dutch edition).
4to. XII, 536 pp. With a French and a Latin title-page and 2 woodcut title-vignettes. Arabic types. Later red half calf with giltstamped spine and spine-title. First edition. - Early Arabic grammar by the orientalist Savary (1750-88), published posthumously and edited by Louis-Mathieu Langlès (1763-1824), the conservator of the oriental manuscripts at the Bibliothèque Nationale in Napoleonic France. Langlès enriched the work with several Oriental fairy tales, including the legend of Sindbad in French and Arabic, making this the first Arabic printing of a tale from the Thousand and One Nights. Savary was also the author of the second translation of the Qur'an, published in 1783, which replaced Du Ryer's translation from 1647 and saw reissues as late as 1970. - Upper cover pierced in one place. Paper with occasional light brownstaining; small flaw to lower corner of p. 519, not affecting text. A fine volume in an appealing binding. Brunet V, 154. Schnurrer 429 (note). OCLC 234128786. Not in Graesse or Fück. For Savary cf. Dictionnaire des orientalistes de langue française 927ff.
4to (295 x 235 mm). 50 photographs of Egypt (albumen prints and cyanotypes), and approximately 40 albumen prints of Switzerland. Impressively presented series of original photographs taken at various important sites and cities in Egypt, including Giza, Thebes, Karnak, Luxor, Abydos, Esna etc. The photographs show archaeological sites like the temple of Seti I at Abydos, the precinct of Ahmen-Rah near Luxor, the avenue of Sphinxes at Karnak, the Ramesseum and the Colossi at Thebes, the temple of Khnum at Esna, the Sphinx and pyramids of Giza and many more. Other photographs show the local population, doing a wide variety of activities, such as catching crocodiles on the nile, a Luxor barber shaving the head of a sailor, or a Bedouin camp in the Libyan Desert. - The Istanbul-based Sebah studio catered to the Western European interest in the exotic "Orient" and the growing numbers of tourists visiting the Muslim world who wished to take home images of the city, ancient ruins in the surrounding area, portraits, and local people in traditional costumes. "Sebah rose to prominence because of his well-organized compositions, careful lighting, effective posing, attractive models, great attention to detail, and for the excellent print quality" (Gary Saretzky, Photo history). Jean Sebah (1876-1947) took over the studio from his father Pascal after his death and signed his productions "J. P. Sebah" on the negative, putting his initial in front of his father's. - Some spotting and fading.
1 text volume (4to) and 2 atlas volumes (38.5 x 28 cm). (6), 304 pp. XI, (5) pp. 4 ff. With 121 illustrations in text and 144 collotype plates in atlas. Text volume in original printed paper wrappers. Atlas in original half cloth, printed paper sides. First edition of an art-historical work on Chinese funeral monuments, dating mainly from the Han dynasty. The work is compiled and written by the French archaeologists Gilbert de Voisins (1877-1939), Jean Lartigue (1886-1940) and Victor Segalen (1878-1919), who was in charge of the expedition. The expedition was cut off early due to the First World War. The two atlasses contain 144 loose collotype plates, showing statues, tombs, mausolea, reliefs and monuments as well as some of the sites, covering the area's of Nanjing, Shanxi, and Sichuan. Scientific descriptions of the plates are given in the text volume, along with small maps of the area, plans of the excavation sites and tombs and schematical reproductions of the artefacts. - Binding slightly rubbed along the extremities. Text volume and plates browned. Overall a very good copy. Couling, p.501.
8vo. Half-title and title, (4), 123, (1) pp. With 4 lithographed plates. Contemporary red morocco-backed cloth. One of 150 copies, rare. "A neat summary of nearly all that is necessary to be known in order to tame, train, and fly a hawk successfully" (Harting). - Cloth rubbed, a very good copy. Harting 217. Schwerdt II, 168.
Copper engraving with full original colour, in 3 unjoined sheets. Each sheet 47 × 71 cm. Very good condition, lovely original colour, mild toning, small nicks in blank margins and light stains in lower area. A very rare edition of Strass's large and resplendently coloured time chart depicting the inter-connecting streams of the histories of different World civilizations and nations from 3984 BC up to 1830. This large and colourful time chart employs ingenious visual methods to graphically illustrate historical events. The history of the world is presented as interwoven streams featuring the stories of its great civilizations/nations weave their way down the time chart like the paths of streams. History is shown to commence with Genesis, which is shown here to have occurred in 3984 BC, a date close to that asserted by the Ussher Chronology. This theory as to the timing of Genesis (which was said to have occurred in 4004 BC) was devised by James Ussher (1581-1656), the Archbishop of Armagh and the Primate of All Ireland (in office 1625-56), and is based on his "literal reading" of the Bible. The Ussher Chronology gained widespread popularity in certain Protestant circles during the 19th century. The time line starts at the top of the composition with the great ancient civilizations, namely, the Italians; Greeks; Asia Minor; Assyrians; Syrians; Phoenicians; Jews; Egyptians and the Chinese. Down the various streams are plotted the names and dates of different eras and rulers. The stream on the furthest right details major world events. Part way down, the civilizations in the Western and Mediterranean world converge into the 'Roman Empire' before splintering again into various new entities. The streams then continue to weave, combine and separate, mitigated by the interconnecting streams of major events and characters, towards the bottom of the time line, where the individual streams are represented by the nations and regions of Denmark; Sweden; Russia; the German States; Austria; Holland; Switzerland; France; the Italian States; States of the Church (Papal States); Spain; Great Britain; Greece; Persia; and China. William Bell, who issued his own version of the time chart in London in 1849, described the merits of Strass's conception to the study of history: "However natural it may be to assist the perspective faculty, in its assumption of abstract time, by the idea of a line [...] it is astonishing that [...] the image of a Stream should not have presented itself to any one [...] The expressions of gliding, and rolling on; or of a rapid current, applied to time, are equally familiar to us with those of long and short. Neither does it require any great discernment to trace [...] in the rise and fall of empire, an allusion to the source of a river, and to the increasing rapidity of a current, in proportion with the declivity of their channels towards the engulfing ocean. Nay, the metaphor [...] gives greater liveliness to the ideas, and impresses events more forcibly upon the mind, than the stiff regularity of the straight line. Its diversified power likewise of separating the various currents into subordinate branches, or of uniting them into one vast ocean of power [...] tends to render the idea by its beauty more attractive, by its simplicity more perspicuous, and by its resemblance more consistent" (Rosenberg & Grafton, pp.143 & 147). The present time chart is derived from Strass's exceedingly rare "Strom der Zeiten" ("Stream of Time", 1804). Strass's work proved to be highly influential and was widely copied in both Europe and America, and translated into several languages, including Russian. All of the large German editions are very rare, and the present example, in unjoined sheets with resplendent original colour, is an especially fine example. Cf. OCLC (Re: 1818 Zanna ed.) 165398011. (derivative 1849 London ed.). Daniel Rosenberg & Anthony Grafton, Cartographies of Time, pp. 143f. & 147, fig. 4:45.
2 vols. 18mo. (6), CLXX, 154 pp. 105, (1), 202 pp. With Arabic title-page printed in red and black. Contemporary tanned half sheepskin, gold-tooled spine. First edition in French of two Arabic travels to China and India. The text was translated from the Arabic by the French orientalist and professor Joseph Toussaint Reinaud (1795-1867). The Arabic text was first printed in 1811, under supervision of the French linguist and orientalist Louis-Mathieu Langlès. - The first volume starts with an introduction to the text, followed by the translation. The main text can be divided into two sections. The first account is based on statement from a merchant called Suleyman, who is said to have travelled to India and China in the years 851-852 (237), however, the actual author of the text is unknown. The following account is written down by Abu Zayd al-Hasan al-Sirafi. Al-Mas'udi, "the Herodotus of the Arabs", mentions al-Sirafi in one of his works, stating that he met him in the year 915-916 (303) in Basra, Iraq. Al-Sirafi tells us he was commanded to verify and extend the earlier account. The date of the second account is unclear, but it was probably written in the first half of the 10th century. The text gives a lively account of the life in China and India, with "… the first foreign descriptions of tea and porcelain, and a whole panorama of Chinese society, from the Son of Heaven and Confucian ethics down to toilet paper and bamboo urinals" (Mackintosh-Smith). The second volume gives notes to the translation, followed by the Arabic text. Added to the Arabic text are two extracts from works by Al-Mas'udi, including his "Muruj al-dhahab". - With owner's inscription on title-page. Sides slightly rubbed. A very good copy: only some minor browning. Cordier (Sinica) 1924f. Hage Chahine 3965. T. Mackintosh-Smith & J. Montgomery (eds.), Two Arabic travel books (2014), pp. 4-17.
490 x 725 mm. Various editions, 16 coloured sheets. Scale 1:100,000. Reliefs shown by contours, hachures and spot heights. Publisher's pictorial wrappers. Rarely found in such a complete group, these topographical maps document an important phase of the Survey of Palestine which was a direct result of the 1917 Balfour Declaration. - "The cadastral survey proceeded in fits and starts, through the Great Revolt of 1936-1939 and World War II. By the end of the mandate, the land was settled in less than 20 percent of Palestine, primarily in areas where Jewish colonies were established, such as the coastal plain, the Marj Ibn Amer valley, and north of Lake Tiberias by the Jordan River. The topographical maps were completed for all of Palestine, excluding the lower Negev. These were very valuable for military purposes during World War II" (Sitta). - Showing the district and sub-district boundaries, plus roads, notable buildings, police stations, minarets, in some cases Sheikh's tombs etc. The maps are as follows: 1. Metulla; 2. Haifa; 3. Safad; 4. Zikhron; 5. Nazareth; 6. Jaffa, Tel Aviv; 7. Nablus; 8. Yibna; 9. Ramle; 10 Jerusalem; 11. Gaza; 12. Hebron; 13. Dead Sea; 14. Rafah; 15. Beersheba; 16. Jebel Usdum. - A little edgewear and toning to wrappers; ownership inscription to each upper wrapper. Sitta, Salman Abu, [review] "A Survey of Palestine under the British Mandate, 1920-1948", in: Journal of Palestine Studies 35.2 (Winter 2006), p. 102.
Folio (368 x 292 mm). Containing 50 albumen prints of Constantinople (ca. 270 x 21 cm each). Red half morocco album with original giltstamped cloth covers; spine blindstamped. Fine period views of the city of Constantinople, by the respected photographic studio of Sébah and Joaillier, showing landscapes as well as monuments, street scenes with merchants, etc. Pascal Sébah (1823-86), a leading Constantinople photographer, was renowned for his well-judged compositions and for the excellent print quality achieved by his technician A. Laroche. His studio, founded in 1857, was continued under his brother Cosimi and his son Jean, later in partnership with Policarpe Joaillier. The studio continued to operate as long as the year 1952. - A representative and fine example of a high-quality album aimed at the 19th century's developing Middle Eastern tourist market.
Small 4to (140 x 188 mm). 115, (1) pp. With 7 lithographed folding plates. Contemporary marbled boards with leather spine and edges. First edition of this Ottoman Turkish treatise on geometry, published by the Imperial Engineering School in Scutari (Istanbul): the official examination coursebook for the engineers of Sultan Sultan Selim III. Contains 88 problems with their practical applications and solutions; the folding plates at the end of the volume boast a total of 180 diagrams. Published just before the famous "Cedid Atlas", by the same press, and re-issued in 1844. - Binding rubbed, extremeties bumped, paper a little stained in places, but generally very good. OCLC lists only two copies, in the Bibliothèque nationale de France and the Staatsbibliothek Berlin. Özege 9109. OCLC 255316387.
Watercolour heightened with white. 681 x 520 mm. Signed and dated by the artist. Matted.
4to (199 x 243 mm). XXXII, 462, (2) pp. Contemporary auburn calf (covers sympathetically restored). Marbled endpapers. First (and only) edition of this early grammar of Ottoman Turkish, the fourth book known to have been printed at the French embassy press at Constantinople established by Choiseul-Gouffier in 1787. The Arabic types were supplied from Basel. The oriental scholar Viguier (1745-1821), who was apostolic prefect and resident at Constantinople from 1783 to 1802, was the first to distinguish in Turkish the exclusive use of either guttural or palatal vowels within a single word. His grammar is printed with the Turkish transliterated, although some sentences are printed in Ottoman script together with their transliteration. - The books printed at the embassy press were "mostly military or scientific and included Turkish translations of Fitte-Clave's 'Elémens de castramentation' and Truguet's 'Tactique navale'. Choiseul-Gouffier was keen to see printing re-established in Turkey, and there may well have been some degree of co-operation between his press and the refounding under Abdul Hamid I of the Turkish press (first established by Ibrahim Müteferrika), which led to the printing of Vauban's work on mines, the 'Fenn-i Lagim'. The press was mostly used for the production of materials used by the embassy" (Atabey). The subscribers included mostly merchants resident in Turkey, although some names from Smyrna and Saloniki are also to be found, as are various missionaries, the English ambassador Ainslie, Count Ludolf, ambassador of the King of the Two Sicilies, and Pierre Guys, author of "Voyage littéraire de la Grèce". - Light browning as common; upper corner of the final errata leaf torn away without loss and professionally remargined. Rebound to style retaining the original, beautifully gilt-stamped spine with sympathetic full calf covers and marbled endpapers. Atabey 1290. Blackmer 1732. Brill, Turcica, 13. Chahine 5025. Aboussouan 936. Vater/Jülg 416. Cf. H. Omont, "Documents sur l'imprimerie à Constantinople", in Revue des Bibliothèques, Paris, July-September 1895.
8vo. (2), 135, (3) pp. With 3 folding tables and 1 engraved plate. Contemporary wrappers with printed spine-label. Only edition of this introduction to Arabic, written by the Comte de Volney (1757-1820) as history professor at the newly-founded École normale, immediately after the end of the Terreur and his release from prison following the fall of Robespierre. In spite of its wide-ranging title, the book comprises essentially an Arabic grammar and a collection of Arabic proverbs; the long introductory chapter has been hailed a model of style. Volney had learned Arabic in 1782 in preparation of a long journey through Egypt and Syria. The work displays his ingenious method of simplifying the study of Arabic, Persian and Turkish by transliterating the alphabets into European characters. The tables give the Arabic alphabet, the conjugation of regular verbs, and instructions on how to write Arabic letters by hand, as well as the Arabic alphabet in European characters intended for merchants travelling to Asia and Africa. With a section of Arabian proverbs included as samples. - Untrimmed in the original grey temporary wrappers as issued; a few pages uncut. A good copy of this important work. Provenance: from the collection of the psychoanalyst and bibliophile Jacques Lacan (1901-81). Gay 3429. Brunet V, 1351. Cioranescu 663767. Monglond III, 481. OCLC 21978700.
8vo. XVI, 424 pp. Folding map frontispiece and 2 full-page maps to the text, 2 as plates, 23 plates. Original sand buckram, title gilt to spine and upper board, top edge gilt. First and only edition. Important regional study of the Arabian Gulf, published in response to the grant of the Baghdad Railway concession by the Ottoman Government to a German-backed consortium. Assesses the economic, military and political implications of rival claims in the various states of the area. - Whigham was a well-connected Scottish author who emigrated to America and worked as drama critic on the Chicago Tribune, and as a war correspondent at the Spanish-American and Russo-Japanese Wars. A close friend and correspondent of British Persian Gulf opinion-makers Lord Curzon and Sir Percy Cox, Whigham wrote the book, based on his extensive travels in the region, at the request of Lord Curzon, who had "advised [him] to go to the Gulf [and] instructed his subordinate officials in that part of the world to give me all the assistance in their power". Whigham is probably best remembered as a prominent amateur golfer, winner of the second and third US Amateur Championships, and author of "How to Play Golf", the first golf instruction manual illustrated from action photographs. Diba Collection 1978, 227. Wilson 243. OCLC 2987283.
A total of some 50 items, in all over 300 handwritten, typescript and printed pages. Various sizes, but mostly 4to. Extraordinary corpus of Hebrew records reflecting the struggle of the Yemenite Jews to emigrate and settle in Israel following Operation Magic Carpet in 1949/50. Includes several letters from the early 1960s written to Eretz Israel by members of the Yemeni community in Aden, regarding the arrangement of their emigration, as well as an important document related to protests by Yemenite Jews living in the Nordia neighborhood of Tel Aviv against the construction of the Dizengoff Center and the demolition of their homes. Additional documents relate to the slum organization in Israel, as well as to author Zvi Medina, giving the names and addresses of Medina family members and recording the 1960 construction of the synagogue in the Hatikva neighborhood for the Jews of Aden. - Printed publications include a Passover Haggadah according to the text of the Yemenite Jews, with ink stamp of "Ein Shemer Camps", as well as the version approved by Saadia Gaon and Maimonides (Jerusalem 1951), its title-page designed by Haim Ben Shalom Mahbbub. Also, a donation printed for Hanukkah 1944 by the Yemenite Jewish Unity Committee, titled "Raising your candles remember your brother's darkness", compiled by Rabbi Shalom, son of Rabbi Yichya Yitzchak Levi, as well as New Year's songs and two Kol Koreh texts regarding the election of the new Yemeni commission committee, as well as the strengthening of the independent educational institutions for the Yemenite Community. - A well-preserved survival.
4to. (20), 171, (1) pp. With large engraved arms of William V of Orange to dedication leaf. Full vellum with handwritten spine title. First edition of this famous collection of Arabic proverbs by the Persian-born scholar Zamakhshari (1075-1144), edited and translated by Hendrik Albert Schultens (1749-93), professor of oriental languages at the University of Leyden. - Little is known of Zamakhshari's youth. He was apparently well-travelled and resided at least twice (once for an extended period of time) in the holy city of Mecca, where he earned his nickname, Jar Allah. As a philologist, he considered Arabic the queen of languages, in spite of the fact that his own native tongue was Persian (and though he wrote several minor works in that language). - Occasional light browning due to paper. Blindstamps of the library of Haverford College, Pennsylvania, to title and dedication. A good copy. Schnurrer 215. GAL I, 292, no. XIV (p. 348). Brill's first encyclopaedia of Islam VIII, 1207. OCLC 4522262.
