Very Good English Original copper engraved plate. 35x23,5 cm. French text on verso on 'La gentille femme Turque estant dans sa maison ou Serail'. This is palte numbered 40. From "Plusieurs descriptions des accoutremens tant des magistrats et officiers de la Porte de l'Empereur des Turcs que des peuples assujettis à son Empire. Avec les figures représentant le tout au naturel, tirées des Medailles antiques & descriptions de eux qui ont frequenté parmy ces nations, ou des bons Autheurs qui en ont écrit.". Published in 1598, Quatre premiers livres des navigations (Travels in Turkey) recorded Nicolay's observations about the Ottoman court and peoples from his 1551 mission to Istanbul on behalf of the French government. The book served as the first comprehensive survey of customs and costumes in the Ottoman world, and is hailed as one of the earliest and most accurate depictions of the Islamic world to appear in Europe. Travels in Turkey achieved a high level of commercial success upon its release. It was later reissued and translated for a number of different countries, including Italy, the Netherlands, England, and Germany. The widespread popularity of the book contributed to the proliferation of costume books throughout Europe at the end of the 16th century, and continued to influence Orientalist artists well into the 19th century such as Eugene Delacroix and Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres. Travels in Turkey is divided in four books, following Nicolay's voyage to Istanbul, accounts of ethnic groups and Ottoman court life, and the religious and military administration in Istanbul. Louis Danet made 60 engravings based on Nicolay's original drawings, which serve as the core of the books, and each print is followed by a caption, describing Islamic ritual, religion and monuments. The images cover all aspects of Ottoman daily life, and depict figures ranging from sultans and sultanas to wrestlers, cooks and Janissary generals.
