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Middle East, incl. Arabian Gulf: History, Travels, Falconry and Horses
'Abd al-Basit ibn Musá `Almawi / Sauvaire, H[enri]. Description de damas. Traductions de l'Arabe. Paris, Imprimerie Nationale, 1895-1896. 8vo. 2 parts in 1 vol. (4), 318 pp. (4), 441, (1) pp. Modern red half morocco with giltstamped spine title; original blue printed wrappers bound within.
€ 1,500
| First edition in book form ("Extrait du Journal Asiatique, 9. sér., v. 3-7, 1894-96"). The French scholar Henri Sauvaire (1849-96), a leading photographer and numismatic collector, served as a Consul in Damascus and Casablanca. He spent the last years of his life writing on Arab culture. In 1864 he embarked on translating into French the "Description of Damascus" by Abd al-Basit al-Amawi, who lived in Damascus in the mid-16th century (d. 1573/4). - Rare and well-preserved. - OCLC 23427282. {BN#28985} (more) |
Abu al-Barakat 'Abdallah b. Ahmad b. Mahmud al-Nasafi. Kanz al-Daqa'iq fil-Furu'. No place, Wednesday 17 Rabi` I 882 AH [1477 AD]. Large 4to (176 x 262 mm). Arabic ms. on oriental paper. 325 ff., expertly written naskh script, possibly in more than one hand, black ink with rubrics, usually 6-8 lines to the page, considerable interlinear and marginal glossing. Full-leather Islamic binding with fore-edge flap; original blind tooled ornamentation (medallion).
€ 12,000
| Manual on Islamic Law by Abu al-Barakat `Abdallah b. Ahmad b. Mahmud al-Nasafi (d. 710/1310), an important Hanafi legist and theologian, born in Nasaf in Sogdian, He taught in the Madrasa al-Kutbiya al-Sultaniya in Kirman, came to Baghdad in 710 and died in Rabi` I 710 (August 1310), apparently on his return journey to Idjadj (in Khuzistan), where he was buried. The Kanz al-Daqa'iq is an important text on Hanafite law and formed the basis for a great number of commentaries, especially in the 9th/14th and 10th/15th centuries (EI² VII, p. 96; Brockelmann, GAL II, pp. 250-53). Contains both the `Ibadat and the Mu`amalat. - Final 12 leaves (f. 313ff.) show edge damage with some loss of text. Copied by Khidr b. Shaykh `Ali (colophon in a chancery hand on f. 325v). - Cf. GAL S II, 265. {BN#30317} (more) |
Abu al-Barakat Hafiz al-din Abdallah b. Ahmad b. Mahmud al-Nasafi Kanz al-daqua'iq fi'l-furu (Treasure of Niceties in the Branches [of Jurisprudence]). N. p., 818 AH [1416 AD] Small folio (28 x 18 cm). 110 ff., manuscript on sturdy laid paper, written area 17,5 x 11 cm, 14 lines to the page, naskh script, black ink, captions in red, extensive marginal and interlinear glosses throughout. later Islamic leather binding with flap, covers cockled.
€ 6,500
| Early-15th-century manuscript of this famous manual on Islamic Law by Abu al-Barakat `Abdallah b. Ahmad b. Mahmud al-Nasafi (d. 710/1310), an important Hanafi legist and theologian, born in Nasaf in Sogdian (today's Qarshi in southern Uzbekistan). He taught in the Madrasa al-Kutbiya al-Sultaniya in Kirman, came to Baghdad in 710 and died in Rabi` I 710 (August 1310), apparently upon his return journey to Idjadj (in Khuzistan), where he was buried. The book was originally an abridgement of his "al-Wâfi" and proved an excellent contribution to the Islamic jurisprudence. "Kanz al-daqua'iq" has been one of the most reliable tracts on Hanafite law and was frequently consulted by fiqh scholars. It formed the basis of 27 commentaries (EI VII, p. 96; Brockelmann, GAL II, pp. 250-53). This mediaeval manuscript was calligraphed by Ahmad b. Amîr and is an extremely early specimen, written only a hundred years after the death of the author. - Upper margins browned; entries in Ottoman-Turkish on the first leaf. {BN#31746} (more) |
Abu al-Fida Isma`il ibn `Ali. The Life of Mohammed, translated from the Arabic of Abulfeda. With an introduction and an appendix by Rev. Wm. Murray. Elgin, A. C. Brander, [1833]. 8vo. XVI, 217, (1) pp. Contemp. red silk binding with remains of a printed spine label.
€ 1,250
| First English edition of this mediaeval biography of the Prophet, "Mukhtasar tarikh al-bashar". Abu'l-Fida, born in Damascus in 1273, was a historian, geographer, military leader, and sultan. The crater Abulfeda on the Moon is named after him. - Title stamped. Some foxing and fingerstaining; a few pages loosened. Binding bumped at extremeties; defects to spine-ends. - OCLC 4396746. {BN#29558} (more) |
Abu Hamid Muhammad al-Ghazzali. Mishkat al-Anwar fi Lata'if al-Akhbar lil-Tahdid ila Sunan al-Sayyid al-Mukhtar. N. p., 15th century. 4to (25 x 16 cm). 127 ff. on Arabic manuscript paper, naskh script with ta'liq features, black ink with rubrics. Rebacked full-leather Oriental binding.
€ 6,500
| The still unedited book in both Arabic and Turkish is a manual of ethical advice based on verses of the Koran and the sayings of the prophet. This work on Islamic ethics is divided into 48 chapters. On ff. 125v-127v the main text is followed by notes in Turkish and Arabic. It does not mention the name of the author, but was ascribed to Ghazzali in Hajji Khalifa (II col. 1693). The text differs from Ghazzali's mystical work "Mishkat al-anwar wa-misfat al-anwar" (GAL S I 751 no. 34a); it was also mentioned (with additional mss.) in GAL S I 751 no.34c and is identical with Ms. Berlin 8745. {BN#31734} (more) |
[Abu Zaid Hasan ibn Yazid / Sulayman al-Tajir / Renaudot, Eusebe (transl.)]. Anciennes relations des Indes et de la Chine, de deux voyageurs Mahometans, qui y allerent dans le neuvieme siecle. Traduites d'Arabe: avec des remarques sur les principaux endroits de ces relations. Paris, Jean-Baptiste Coignard, 1718. 8vo. XXXIX, (1), 397, (17) pp. Later half calf with giltstamped red spine label, marbled boards and endpapers.
€ 2,500
| First French edition. - The famous travel report of the Arab merchant Suleiman al-Tajir, who had visited China and India in the 9th century. His book is the oldest Arabic account of China, written more than 400 years before Marco Polo. This is augmented by the "Silsilat al-Tawarikh" of Abu Zayd al-Hasan al-Shirafi, written in the early 10th century and based on the account of Ibn Wahb al-Basri, who had visited China shortly after Suleiman. The texts are translated and edited with a preface and notes by Eusèbe Renaudot. - Binding rubbed; inner hinges reinforced with brown cloth. Interior somewhat browned throughout. From the collection of the French bibliophile Jean-Baptiste Denis Guy de Sardière (d. 1759), whith his ms. ownership to final page; his signature at the lower end of the title page was obliterated by the next owner (slight damage to t. p. and following leaf due to ink corrosion). The Macclesfield copy sold at Sotheby's in 2007 for £1800. - Lust 298. {BN#27074} (more) |
Abû-Ga `far Muhammad ibn-al-Hasan at-Tûsî. Kitâb al-Hilâf fi `l-fiqh (Treatise on Islamic Law). No place, 1370 AH (1951 AD). Folio. 2 parts in 1 vol. 36, 278 pp. 264, 4 pp. Contemp. blindstamped calf with reinforced spine.
€ 250
| The "Book of Legal Stratagems", edited by Mirza Hasan Yahya al-Hasseini Khâshânpûr. - A good, clean copy. Binding rubbed; spine reinforced with leather strip. Wants front flyleaf. {BN#28106} (more) |
Ahdab ar-Rammah, Nagm-ad-Din Aiyub al-. Al- Furusiya wa'l-manasib al-harbiya. Baghdad, Dairat as-Suun at-Taqafiya wa'n-Nasr, 1984. 4to. 182, (2) pp. With several facsimile illustrations. Publisher's illustrated wrappers.
€ 800
| Late-13th-century Arabic treatise on "horsemanship and the strategems of war", edited by `Id Daif al-`Ibadi. "This treatise exists in two Paris Arabic manuscripts, BN ancient fonds 2825 (old 1128) and fonds Asselin 643. The introduction says that the book contains "all that is necessary for the masters, men of war, gallants, and artificers, in fact of military operations, the different ways of using the lance, the mace, and the arrow: ways of mixing materials, constructing machines, communication of fire, etc., naval combats, and other things no less curious", all for the advancement of Islam. Pyrotechnics, however, play the most important role. The manuscript says: "The second part treats of machines of fire to be used for amusement or for a useful purpose, machines of fire required in war on land or sea, for the defence of fortresses, in sieges, when a place is to be set on fire, in saps when doors covered with iron are to be burnt, when pots are to be thrown by mangonels, pots with narrow necks, clubs, fire-lances, instruments for distillation, the proportions (recipes), smokes, flying fire or rockets, flowers (fireworks), lance-heads, cups, birds, and moons" (A. Rahman Zaky, "Gunpowder and Arab Firearms in the Middle Ages", in: Gladius, VI [1967], pp. 45-58, here: p. 48). - In excellent consition. - OCLC 318028765. Silsilat kutub at-turat 222. {BN#31218} (more) |
Ahmad ibn Muhammad (ibn 'Arabshah) / Golius, Jacob (ed.). [Kitab 'Aja'ib al-maqdur fi aghbar Timur]. Ahmedis arabsiadae vitae et rerum gestarum Timuri, qui vulgo Tamerlanes dicitur, historia. Leiden, Elsevier, 1636. 4to. (8), 448 pp. T. p. in Latin and Arabic printed in red and black within architectural woodcut border by Christoffel van Sichem; Latin half title printed in blue and red; editor's letter to the reader printed in red, blue, and black. (Bound with) II: Dieu, Ludovic de. Rudimenta linguae persicae. Ibid., 1639. (8), 95, (1) pp. T. p. printed in red and black. Contemp. vellum with ms. title to spine.
€ 18,500
| I: First Arabic edition of this important eyewitness account of the life of Tamerlane (Timur Lenk), the successful and barbaric Turkish conqueror in the 14th century, printed entirely in Arabic. "An interesting feature of the book is the use of blue ink for the printing of the word 'Tamerlanis' (between two red lines) on the half-title, as well as for one typographical ornament on leaf 3 recto" (Smitskamp). Based on the original Arabic manuscript completed in 1437-38 by the Syrian author Ahmad lbn 'Arabshah who was secretary to Sultan Ahmad of Baghdad. In the 16th century Timur was made famous in Europe through Christopher Marlowe's play "Tamburlaine" (publ. 1590). - The present work was edited by Jacob Golius and includes a preface by him. The Arabic manuscript used by him is still preserved at Leiden University library and contains many notes in his hand. A French translation by Pierre Vattier appeared in 1658. - II: First edition of the first Persian grammar ever to be printed (Willems notes that Raimondi, in 1614, produced a grammar in Rome for the use of missionaries which remained virtually unknown in the West, but this existed only in manuscript [cf. Smitskamp 310]). "De Dieu's most striking performance" (Smitskamp). The grammars of Ignazio di Gesù (Rome 1661) and of Labrosse (Amsterdam 1684) were largely based on his work. "The two chapters from Genesis are taken from a complete transcription in Arabic characters after the Hebrew-printed Persian text was published by Soncino in Istanbul in 1546" (Smitskamp). - Several contemporary marginal notes in the text; old table of Persian alphabet on endpapers, as well as an old ms. note reproducing Pietro Della Valle's remarks on the Persian language. A very clean, attractive copy. The Life of Tamerlane, especially, is extremely rare: the last copy on the market was the Burrell copy in 1999 (sold at Sotheby's for £8400). - I: Willems 434. Smitskamp 313. Schnurrer 166. Lambrecht 1774. Fück 81f. De Nave 90. Cf. GAL II, 29. - II: Willems 477. Smitskamp 310, 312. Berghman 674. Schwab II, 727. {BN#27067} (more) |
Ahmed Ali Khan, Afghan diplomat. Autograph Quotation signed ("Ahmed Ali"). In French. Paris, 18. IV. 1930. Folio. 1 page. On uncut wove paper, bearing the Schoellers-Parole blind embossed seal, margins uncut.
€ 800
| The original autograph contribution of Ahmed Ali Khan to the Committee of the World League for Peace (Ligue Mondiale pour la Paix), a remarkable organization formed in 1925 with close ties to the League of Nations. The Committee itself was composed of such notaries as Queen Elizabeth of Belgium, King Carol II of Romania, John D Rockefeller, Marie Curie, and Albert Einstein, who personally gathered the present manuscripts over the course of seven years (1925-32). Among the public figures who contributed to the project were dignitaries from the newly-created League of Nations' member states. "The finest ideal for humanity is a peace based on justice and the integral independence of all nations. [Signed] Ahmed Ali". - Pax Mundi. Livre d'or de la paix. Enquete universelle de la Ligue mondiale pour la paix sous le haut patronage de son comite d'honneur avec l'approbation de la Societe des nations, du Bureau international du travail et de la Cour permanente de justice internationale. Geneve, Societe paxunis, 1932. {BN#25291} (more) |
Ahmed Hassan, Hafiz. Pilgrimage to the Caaba and Charing Cross. London, W. H. Allen & Co., [1871]. 8vo. VIII, 174, 8, (2) pp. With mounted photoportrait frontispiece. Original elaborately giltstamped forest green cloth. All edges red.
€ 2,800
| First and only edition; inscribed copy. The author worked in the service of the Nawab (sovereign) of Tonk, in Hindustan. A muslim, the Nawab in January 1870 received permission to make the pilgrimage to Mecca. Ahmed Hassan accompanied him, and his account includes details of the crossing from Bombay to Jeddah, of the visits to Mecca and Medina, and of the continuation of his journey to England. The account is uncommon. - Occasional minute foxing to interior, otherwise a very fine copy in well-preserved original binding. Inscribed by the author on t. p.: "With the author's compliments". - Not in Macro, Bibliography of the Arabian Peninsula. {BN#30334} (more) |
Ainsworth, William Francis / Gliddon, George Robins. Physical map of the basin of the Euphrates and Tigris Rivers. Enlarged from a manuscript sketch of W. Francis Ainsworth. London, July 1849. Large coloured manuscript map mounted on cloth (89 x 89 cm) by Gliddon after Ainsworth. With title in large panel at upper right, geological keys and scale in panel at lower left, and surrounded by a red border.
€ 12,000
| A large manuscript map of the Euphrates and Tigris river basin, showing the large area between the quadrangle of the Mediterranean, the Black and Caspian Seas and the Persian Gulf. Copied by G. R. Gliddon after W. F. Ainsworth. Between 1835 and 1837 the British geographer, geologist and surgeon Ainsworth (1807-96) participated in an expedition of the Royal Geographical Society into Northern Syria led by Francis Rawdon Chesney (1789-1872). During this expedition Ainsworth was commissioned to survey large portions of the largely unknown Euphrates and Tigris rivers from their sources in the Taurus Mountains to their outlet in the Persian Gulf, in order to ascertain the feasibility of their navigation with European vessels and to explore the physical formation of the area. As a result and using a biblical frame of reference (to find geological evidence for Noah's flood) he constructed this geological map and a series of four geographical cross-sections - very early examples of this kind of thematic cartography. Upon his return Ainsworth published only a small portion of the results in his "Researches in Assyria, Babylonia, and Chaldaea" (London, 1838), which does not include the present map. This was one of the earliest Western expeditions to the regions that belonged to the old kingdom of Armenia, and the map includes Mount Ararat, Lake Van and the cities of Van and Yerevan (the ancient city of Ani was to be discovered and excavated only in the 1890s). In 1849 the Royal Geographical Society allowed the English-born American Egyptologist G. R. Gliddon (1809-57) to inspect and copy the map. He prepared two copies: first, a small-scale one now in the collection of the Library Company of Philadelphia, made for one of his publications on the Ancient World; then our map, an enlarged copy of the original, meant for educational purposes, such as the series of commercial lectures he delivered on that theme. - Somewhat creased and a with few minor tears in the border. In good condition. - For Ainsworth cf. DNB, Supplement I, 20-21; for Gliddon: Encyclopaedia Britannica XII (1910), 122. {BN#29092} (more) |
Albumasar. Flores astrologie. Venedig, J. B. de Sessa, [um 1500]. 19 unn. Bll. (ohne das letzte weiße Bl.). Mit 2 unterschiedlichen Druckermarken, großer Holzschnittinitiale und 79 teils schematischen Textholzschnitten. Maroquin vom Ende des 19. Jhs., sign. "Belz-Niedrée", mit Steh- und Innenkantenvergoldung. Dreiseitiger Goldschnitt. 4to.
€ 18,500
| Dritte Inkunabelausgabe des Hauptwerkes von Albumasar, einem arabischen Mathematiker und Astronomen (gest. 886), dessen Werke das mittelalterliche Weltbild des Abendlandes stark mitprägten. Die Flores sind vermutlich ein Auszug aus "De magnis coniunctionibus" (vgl. auch DSB I, 35, 1). Laut Houzeau/L. ist ein arabisches Originalmanuskript nicht bekannt. - Die ersten 3 Bll. mit großen Braunflecken, sonst nur gering fleckig und leicht gebräunt. Die Holzschnitte mit allegorischen Planetendarstellungen und den Tierkreiszeichen zur Illustration der astrologischen Blütenlese. - Goff A-358. GW 839. BMC V, 482. BSB A-229. IGI 263. Klebs 37.3. Lalande 28. Houzeau/Lancaster I, 3819. {BN#31973} (more) |
Al-Mutanabbi, Abul-Tajjib / Hammer[-Purgstall], Joseph von (transl.). Motenebbi, der größte arabische Dichter. Zum ersten Mahle ganz übersetzt. Vienna, Heubner, 1824. 8vo. LVI, (2), 427 pp. Contemp. half cloth with giltstamped spine title.
€ 850
| First German edition of the highly influential poems of al-Mutanabbî (915-965). - Ms. library shelfmark and stamp on t.p. (withdrawn). - Goedeke VII, 764, 68. Wurzbach VII, 276, 44. {BN#28040} (more) |
Al-Rashid, Ibrahim (ed.). Documents on the History of Saudia Arabia. Salisbury, NC, 1976. Folio (222 x 280 mm). 3 vols. (6), XII, 233 pp. (4), III, (1), 246 pp. (4), IV, 238 pp. Original cloth with printed spine title.
€ 3,500
| First and only edition; no. 113 of 200 numbered copies. Important source-based history of Saudi Arabia from 1909 to 1935, covering the unification of Central Arabia under Ibn Saud (1909-25; vol. 1), the consolidation of power in Central Arabia under Ibn Saud (1925-28; vol. 2), and the establishment of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia under Ibn Saud (1928-35; vol. 3). Includes many otherwise inaccessible documents of diplomatic correspondence. {BN#26504} (more) |
Al-Sajawandi, Muhammad. Al Sirajiyyah. Probably western Asia Minor, 1019 AH (= 1610 AD). 8vo (194:117 mm). Ottoman Arabic ms. on smoothed paper. (1), 108 ff. With ornamental headpiece in gilt and colours; double page borders in red. Contemp. brownstamped calf with fore-edge flap.
€ 3,000
| Important 12th century treatise on the Islamic laws of inheritance, here in an early modern commercial manuscript with unsophisticated calligraphy. The text is surrounded by wide borders, within which are marginal notes (mostly by the same hand). The scribe is one Ihsani ibn Abdülkâdir ibn Ihsani el-Aksehri, from Aksehir in central Anatolia. - The watermark of clover rod suggests that western (Italian?) paper was used. - One missing leaf (fol. 3) replaced; index and notes on endpapers. Somewhat soiled and browned; signs of wear. Binding shows severe wear; partly restored. {BN#27964} (more) |
Al-Shanti, Ahmad M. S. Oolitic Iron Ore Deposits in Wadi Fatima Between Jeddah and Mecca Saudi Arabia. Mineral Resources Bulletin 2. Jeddah, Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, 1966. V, (1), 51, (1), l. bl. f. With portrait frontispiece (HRH King Faisal) and 13 folding maps in pocket. Original printed green cloth binding.
€ 850
| Rare Saudi government publication on iron ore deposits (mainly Goethite and Hematite) in Western Arabia. As stated in the foreword, "Bulletin 2 is the first geological report on an occurrence of a single metallic mineral to be published by the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources". Wadi Fatima, east of Jiddah on the Arabian Red Sea coast, is a microcosm of the geology of the Jiddah area. Rocks ranging in age from 800-million-year-old metamorphic rocks to Tertiary lava flows are exposed, and illustrate the geological richness of western Saudi Arabia. "The Wadi Fatima ore deposits promise to become one of the main sources of iron for the developing steel industry of the Kingdom". Binding rubbed with some discoloration to spine, otherwise fine. - OCLC 4053546. {BN#26073} (more) |
al-Tabari, Abu Ja'far Muhammad / Muhammed ibn Muhammad, Abu `Ali Bel`ami. Chronique de Abou-Djafar-Mo'hammed-Ben-Djarir-Ben-Yezid Tabari, traduite sur la version Persane D'abou-'Ali Mo'hammed Bel'ami, d'après les manuscrits de Paris, de Gotha, de Londres et de Canterbury. Paris, Imprimerie Impériale (vol. IV: Nogent-le-Rotrou, Imprimerie de A. Gouverneur), 1867-1874. Large 8vo. 4 vols. VIII, 599, (1) pp. (4), II, 552 pp. (4), 752 pp. (4), III, (1), 665, (1) pp. Contemp. marbled red half calf with giltstamped title to spine.
€ 1,500
| Hermann Zotenberg's celebrated French translation of Tabari's great 9th-century chronicle ("Tarikh al-Tabari"), actually based on a Persian digest of this work. It remains one of the most important sources for the early days of Islam and for the Umayyad and Abbasid dynasties. The Silesian-born French orientalist and Arabist Zotenberg (1836-94) worked for the Bibliothèque nationale de France in Paris. - Bindings rubbed; edges and corners bumped; hinges weakened; front cover of vol. IV loose. Interior clean and well-preserved. - Rare. - OCLC 6967785. Cf. Fück 251. Cf. E. Macro, Bibliography of the Arabian Peninsula, 52 (only the English edition under the title "The conquest of Persia by the Arabs"). {BN#25238} (more) |
American Racing Manual. The American Racing Manual. 1942 to 1990. A reference on Thoroughbred Racing, With Special Exclusive Features and Other Comprehensive and Authoritative Information on all Turf Subjects. Chicago, New York and and Los Angeles, Triangle Publications, 1942-1990. 47 volumes. Original illsutrated cloth with gilt title to spine.
€ 5,000
| A continous run, lacking only the volume for 1975. The Manual was first published in 1906. The work was continuously published until 1994, when its format was changed to an abbreviated form. Content of the work covers the previous years racing performances for the United States. Also included are histories of major stakes races, race records of the year-end champions, a section giving all Hall of Fame horses, information on the Breeder's Cup races, and some information on non-American racing. Statistics on the year's record of every racehorse, racehorse owner, racehorse trainer, and racehorse breeder are also part of the content along with track speed records and world records. Articles about subjects connected with the racing industry as well as analyzing trends and developments from the year are also included. {BN#29001} (more) |
American Stud Book. The American Stud Book, Containing Full Pedigrees of all Imported Thorough-Bred Stallions and Mares. With their Produce. Including Arabs, Barbs and Spanish Horses. Volumes 1-29. From the Earliest Record to 1983. New York, Sanders D. Bruce [and from 1896:] The Jockey Club, 1873-1984. 29 vols. bound in 38. Uniformly bound in half calf with brown cloth covers and giltstamped spine labels in two colors. Marbled endpapers. Later volumes (from 1964) in original cloth with gilt spine.
€ 12,000
| The complete run of the stud book for the Thoroughbred horses in the United States. It was founded by Sanders Bruce, with assistance from his brother B. G. Bruce. In 1896, The Jockey Club bought out Bruce and assumed publication of the book, which it has continued to the present. - The American Stud Book includes all Thoroughbred horses foaled in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also includes any Thoroughbreds imported into those places from other countries, as long as those countries' Thoroughbred stud books are approved by The Jockey Club. {BN#28998} (more) |
Amico da Gallipoli, Bernadino. Trattato delle piante & immagini de sacri edifizi di Terra Santa. Florence, Pietro Cecconcelli, (1619)-1620. Folio (205 x 295 mm). (8), 65, (1) pp. With engr. title page, large woodcut printer's device on reverse of final f., and 34 double-page-sized etchings by Jacques Callot, printed from 38 plates, with 46 numbered illustrations. Contemp. limp vellum with ms. title "Amico" to spine. All edges red.
€ 5,000
| Second edition, the first to be illustrated by Callot. All etchings are in their first state, with typographical text on the reverse. Colophone dated "M.DC.XIX". The etchings are numbered 1-41 and 43-47. "Mariette parle de cette série dans ses 'Notes Manuscrites' (Paris, Cabinet des Estampes). Ces planches, dit-il, sont gravée d'une manière très ferme et le peu de figures qui s'y rencontrent sont des mieux qu'ait faites Callot" (Lieure). Includes a view and a plan of Jerusalem, views of buildings with many details and ground plans unsurpassed for centuries, according to Tobler. - A good copy with slight foxing to margins. Top spine end slightly bumped; modern endpapers. Loss of upper corner to p. 53 (fig. 41), remargined using the respective page of another copy without illustrations on verso (slight loss to etched border; some gluestaining). Several contemp. marginalia; ms. notes to endpapers; ms. index et the end. Bound first is a large, folding engraved map of the eastern Mediterranean with insets of Palestine and Jerusalem, engraved by Nicolas Sanson: "Iesu Christi Salvatoris Nostri et Apostolorum Petri, et Pauli Mansiones, Itinera, Peregrinationes &c. per Galilaeam, Samariam, Iudaeam; et per Aegyptum, Asiam, Europam" (from: Sanson, Geographia Sacra. Paris, Mariette, 1665). Ms. ownership "Mompre et Moucheron" on reverse. - BM-STC (17th c. Italian) 29. Cicognara 3932. Atabey 20. Kat. der Ornamentstichslg. Berlin 2782. Pollen I, 24. Fowler 19. Röhricht 837. Tobler 87. Navari 31 (incomplete). Laor 940 & 941. Plan 220-254. Meaume 4455-4489. Lieure 306-352. Sanson's map: Laor 697. {BN#26642} (more) |
Andrade, Jacinto Freyre de. [Vida de Dom Ioao de Castro, Quarto Visorey da India.] Vida de D. Ioam de Castro, Quarto Viso-Rey da India. Lisbon, Ioam da Costa f. Antonio Leite, 1671. Folio. (8), 380 pp. With additional engr. t. p., engr. portrait frontispiece, and full-page woodcut in the text; several woodcut vignettes and initials. 18th century calf with giltstamped label to gilt spine.
€ 8,500
| Second edition (first published in 1651). "Cette biographie est un des livres classiques de la langue portugaise" (Brunet). Includes an account of the battles at Ormuz between the Turks and the Arabs. Dom João de Castro (1500-48) was a naval officer and later Viceroy of Portuguese India. In 1538 he embarked on his first voyage to India, arriving at Goa and immediately proceeding to the defense of Diu. Castro was responsible for the overthrow of Mahmud, King of Gujarat whose interests threatened Portuguese control of the Goan coast. His voyages frequently took him to the coasts of Arabia, and his present biography contains many details about the Peninsula, especially about Aden and the sea route to Mecca. Castro died in Goa in 1548 and was initially buried there, but his remains were later exhumed and transferred to Portugal. - Some fingerstaining at the beginning, otherwise fine. Contemporary ms. ownerships to printed t. p. and flyleaf. - OCLC 21568157. Brunet I, 263. Cf. Atabey 462. BM 9: 1024 (241). Salva 3448. Not in Blackmer. {BN#31031} (more) |
Anouchirevan Khan Sepahbodi, Persian Minister in Berne. Autograph Quotation signed. In Arabic. No place or date. Folio. 1 page. On uncut wove paper, bearing the Schoellers-Parole blind embossed seal, margins uncut.
€ 1,500
| The original autograph contribution of Anouchirevan Khan Sepahbodi to the Committee of the World League for Peace (Ligue Mondiale pour la Paix), a remarkable organization formed in 1925 with close ties to the League of Nations. The Committee itself was composed of such notaries as Queen Elizabeth of Belgium, King Carol II of Romania, John D Rockefeller, Marie Curie, and Albert Einstein, who personally gathered the present manuscripts over the course of seven years (1925-32). Among the public figures who contributed to the project were dignitaries from the newly-created League of Nations' member states. "Peace is the foundation for the prosperity of the world. [Signed] Anouchirevan Khan Sepahbodi". Sepahbodi was Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary of Persia at Berne. - Pax Mundi. Livre d'or de la paix. Enquete universelle de la Ligue mondiale pour la paix sous le haut patronage de son comite d'honneur avec l'approbation de la Societe des nations, du Bureau international du travail et de la Cour permanente de justice internationale. Geneve, Societe paxunis, 1932. {BN#25303} (more) |
Anville, [Jean Baptiste Bourguignon d']. L'Euphrate et le Tigre. Paris, Imprimerie Royale, 1779. 4to. 148, XII pp. With engr. folding map (535 x 448 mm) with borders in contemp. colour. Early 19th-c. brown calf; giltstamped spine rebacked.
€ 2,500
| Very rare topographical work about Mesopotamia and Babylonia, written by one of the greatest cartographers and geographical writers of his age. The large-format map was also sold separately and is almost never encountered with the book it was meant to accompany. It shows the area from Kayseri in Anatolia to Tabriz and Basra and "offre les noms anciens et modernes placés comparativemente" (Notice, no. 54). The supplement on Basra announced at the end of the books is not bound with any known copy and was probably never published; the Anville bibliography states "160 pages" (i.e., 148+12). - Covers somewhat rubbed; spine, corbers and inner hinges restored in early 20th c. Comewhat foxed, but wide-margined copy. Covers bear giltstamped arms of the "Society of Writers to the Signet", one of the oldest British legal associations (founded in 1594); their shelfmarks on pastedown; their contemp. ms. ownership note on t. p. The Burrell copy (described as "without the supplement on Basra") fetched £632 in 1999. - OCLC 558160044. Notice des ouvrages de M. d'Anville (1802), no. 54 (cartes) & 36 (ouvr. impr.). {BN#25447} (more) |
Arab Cavaliers. Original photogravure taken from the painting of A. Schreyer. Paris, [1867]. 300 x 430 mm.
€ 150
| {BN#23317} (more) |
[Arab Revolt in Palestine]. British soldiers at Bab-al-Amud. Jerusalem, 2. XI. 1938. Original gelatin silver print (265 x 220 mm).
€ 500
| British soldiers installing a barbed wire fence at Sha'ar Shechem after Arabic rebels had seized the Old City of Jerusalem and barricaded the gates on 15 October 1938. Soldiers of the Coldstream Guards, Royal Northumberland Fusiliers and Black Watch under the command of District General Richard O'Connor recaptured the Old City, killing 19 Arabs. The 1936-39 Great Arab Revolt opposed British colonial rule and mass Jewish immigration to Mandate Palestine. - Blue pencil caption on reverse: "Barbed wire fences around Damascus Gate to prevent escape of Arabs who terrorized area for 4 days". {BN#26298} (more) |
[Arabia - photo album]. Collection of vintage prints of the Middle East. Oman, Iraq, and other places, 1919/early1920s. 99 b/w prints. Various sizes, 65 x 105 to 145 x 205 mm. Mounted on black cardboard; captioned throughout in white. Dark blue calf album (extremeties rubbed and bumped), cord-bound, with marbled endpapers. Small oblong folio (335 x 247 mm).
€ 8,500
Curious album of original photographs taken throughout the Middle East. The set includes views of camels and boats in Mascat, river scenes and oases in Iraq (Ashar Creek; Euphrates), portraits of an Arab lady and sheikh (possibly a sometime Iraqi associate of Jack Philby, and member of his troop of Arabian franctireurs), a religious procession in Basra (Muharrah), street scenes and mosques in Baghdad, the ruins of Chesiphon, Jebel al-Tarik, etc. Further images include Suez, Karachi, the Pacific islands of the South Seas, etc. - Well-preserved; from a Swedish collection. The first photograph is dated 19 Oct. 1919. {BN#31892} (more)
Arabian American Oil Company. Report of Operations to the Saudi Arab Government by the Arabian American Oil Company. 1956. Dharan, The Company, (1957). Folio. IV, 44, 44, IV pp. Colour illustrations throughout. Original illustrated colour wrappers.
€ 300
| 1956 issue of the "Taqrir an sair al-amal marfu ila Hukuma al-Arabiya as-Suudiya min qibal Sarikat az-Zait al-Arabiya al-Amrikiya", printed in Arabic and English throughout. The annual journal issued by ARAMCO reported on the year's work and activities in the form of essays, statistical figues, and profuse illustrations. - Insignificant duststains and foxing to covers, otherwise perfectly preserved. - OCLC 2416997. ZDB-ID 875410-x. {BN#26191} (more) |
Arabian American Oil Company. Report of Operations to the Saudi Arab Government by the Arabian American Oil Company. 1953. Dharan, The Company, (1954). Folio. VI, 59, (2), 59, VI pp. Colour illustrations throughout. Original illustrated colour wrappers.
€ 200
| 1953 issue of the "Taqrir an sair al-amal marfu ila Hukuma al-Arabiya as-Suudiya min qibal Sarikat az-Zait al-Arabiya al-Amrikiya", printed in Arabic and English throughout. The annual journal issued by ARAMCO reported on the year's work and activities in the form of essays, statistical figues, and profuse illustrations. This issue mourns the passing of HRH King Abd al-Aziz on November 9, 1953. - Slight damage to spine, otherwise perfectly preserved. Includes a publicity article on the ARAMCO Report reprinted from the Sept. 1954 issue of Oil World and a letter from the ARAMCO publicity department to a Missouri schoolteacher who had previously requested informational material. - OCLC 2416997. ZDB-ID 875410-x. {BN#26190} (more) |
Arabian American Oil Company. Report of Operations to the Saudi Arab Government by the Arabian American Oil Company. 1955. Dharan, The Company, (1956). Folio. VI, (2), 48, (8), 48 pp. Colour illustrations throughout. Original illustrated colour wrappers.
€ 350
| 1955 issue of the "Taqrir an sair al-amal marfu ila Hukuma al-Arabiya as-Suudiya min qibal Sarikat az-Zait al-Arabiya al-Amrikiya", printed in Arabic and English throughout. The annual journal issued by ARAMCO reported on the year's work and activities in the form of essays, statistical figues, and profuse illustrations. A few years previously, ARAMCO had moved their headquarters from New York to Dharan, jointly with King Abdul Aziz Ibn Saud managing to negotiate a larger share of the profits for the Saudi Arab Government. Principal oilfield at the time were Ghawar and Safaniya, soon to be confirmed the largest onshore and the largest offshore field in the world, respectively. - English cover chipped at edge, otherwise perfectly preserved. - OCLC 2416997. ZDB-ID 875410-x. {BN#26072} (more) |
[Arabian Gulf - Shatt Al Arab]. Persian Gulf. Mouth of the Euphrates. Shatt Al Arab and Bahmanshir River. From surveys by the Port Directorate, Basra, 1926-38. Khor Abdullah surveyed by Commr. H. E. F. Paine RIN, 1941-1942. London, 1944. 670 x 980 mm. Lights and beacons highlighted in purple.
€ 1,500
No. 1235. Wartime reprint, "reproduced by the U.S. Hydrographic Office from British Admiralty Chart". First issued in 1921, with changes in 1923, 1928, 1931, 1936, 1940, and 1943. {BN#31874} (more)
[Arabian Gulf]. Das Eyland Ormus oder Jerun. No place, mid-18th c. Engraving, 252 x 308 mm. Matted.
€ 400
| Hormuz Island, near Qeshm Island in the Persian Gulf. - Cf. Al-Quasimi 175. {BN#18536} (less) |
[Arabian Gulf]. Persian Gulf and Adjacent Countries. London, War Office, Topographical Section, 1908. Colour map, 72 x 57 cm. Scale 1:4 055 040 or 1 inch to 64 miles; (E 42°-E 69°/N 40°-N 15°).
€ 1,500
| Map of the Arabian Gulf region showing international boundaries, zones by the Anglo-Russian Convention 31st Aug. 1907, transportation, telegraphs, water features and populated places. Relief shown by spot heights. - A crisp copy in perfect condition. OCLC locates only three copies (British Library, Univ. of Connecticut, Nat. Library of Australia). - OCLC 221059917. {BN#30096} (more) |
[Arabian Gulf]. Stürken, Alfred. Reisebriefe aus dem Persischen Golf und Persien. In: Mitteilungen der Geographischen Gesellschaft in Hamburg. Bd. XII. Hamburg, L. Friederichsen & Co., 1907. 8vo. (4), 244 pp., Reisebriefe: pp. (69)-124. With 28 illustrations on 20 plates. 5 folding maps. Original printed wrappers.
€ 950
| First edition. - In 1905 the Hamburg merchant Alfred Stürken (1868-1925) undertook a voyage to India. The following year, his return route led him through the Arabian Gulf, to Oman, Bahrein and Kuwait. He published the diary of this return journey, amply illustrated by photographs, in the Proceedings of the Hamburg Geographical Society. - Wrapper somewhat dusty and frayed. An uncut, untrimmed copy; well preserved. {BN#30175} (more) |
[Arabian Nights]. Burton, Richard Francis. A plain and literal translation of the Arabian Nights' entertainments, now entituled the book of the Thousand Nights and a Night. (Including: Supplemental nights). [London?], Richard Burton Club, [c. 1910]. 17 vols. Royal 8vo (24 x 16 cm). With numerous illustrations (including the series by Albert Letchford), repeated on laid paper; the 17 frontispieces repeated in colour. Contemporary three quarter olive green morocco, gold-tooled spine, tops gilt.
€ 10,000
| A handsome edition of Burton's "Arabian Nights", finely illustrated and printed in a limited edition of 100 hand-numbered copies. Bold to a fault, Richard Burton travelled to Mecca, explored the African Great Lakes, shocked his readers with his candid travel accounts, and gained fame and riches with his translation of the Arabian Nights. The first edition was published in 1885-88 and re-issued by the Burton Club shortly thereafter. The present edition is a reprint of the first Burton Club edition, illustrated with, among others, Albert Letchford's famous plates. - Spines slightly faded. Fine set, uncut and partly unopened. {BN#29795} (more) |
[Arabian Peninsula]. Laila. North F-38. Second edition. Army/Air Style. [London], War Office, 1944. 707:601 mm. Photolithographed in 3 colours. Scale 1:1,000,000.
€ 850
| Rare RAF map of central Arabia, showing Jebal Tuwaiq, the desert west, and Wadi ad-Dawasir south. Compiled by the R.G.S., drawn by the War Office, and photolithographed by the O.S. in 1943 for the Royal Air Force. The first edition was published in 1925. - Slightly wrinkled, but in good condition. - OCLC 634949403. {BN#25575} (more) |
[Arabian Peninsula]. - Cox, Percy. Some Excursions in Oman. In: The Geographical Journal. Vol. LXVI No. 3 (September 1925). London, The Royal Geographical Society, 1925. 8vo. pp. 193-227 (entire volume: viii, 193-288 pp., with 22 photographic illustrations and a folding colour map). Original printed blue wrappers.
€ 800
Extensive account of an expedition in the hinterlands of Oman (much of which is now territory of the United Arab Emirates) undertaken by Major-General Cox: from Abu Dhabi to Baraimi and onwards to Jabal Akhdhar (or Green Mountains) and back to Muscat by the Wadi Samail, and from Ras-al-Khaima to Baraimi, then directly onwards to the coast at Shinas and on by the shore to Sohar. The illustrations show Fort Jalali in Muscat, Beni Habib Village in Jabal Akhdhar, the entrance to Elphinstone Inlet, Idaiyeh, the Masaikin Plain, the fort at Nejwah, Tanuf, Jabal Khidr: a peak of the Jabal Akhdhar, a view of the Wadi Mi'aidin towards Birkat al Moz in Sharaija, and Muti, at the base of Jabal Akhdhar. The folding double map shows the travel route (with a highly detailed plan of the area between Ras-al-Kahimah in the North and the Baraimi Oasis in the South). - Sir Percy Cox (1864-1937), longtime Acting Political Resident in the Gulf, is regarded as one of the major figures in the creation of modern Iraq. He was to serve as president of the Royal Geographic Society from 1933 to 1936. {BN#31516} (more)
[Arabian Peninsula]. - Craufurd, C[harles Edward Vereker]. The Dhofar District. In: The Geographical Journal. Vol. LXIII No. 2 (February 1919). London, The Royal Geographical Society, 1919. 8vo. pp. 97-105 (entire volume: iv, 65-128 pp., with 18 photographic illustrations and a folding colour map). Original printed blue wrappers.
€ 650
Early account of a visit to the seaport of Dhofar (Oman) on the southern coast of the Peninsula, including an interesting account of the local boats and the sailing skills of their owners. The illustrations show Makalla in Hadramaut, a camel drawing water in Dhofar, and the ruins of the temple of al-Bilad. {BN#31509} (more)
[Arabian Peninsula]. - Thesiger, Wilfred. Desert Borderlands of Oman. In: The Geographical Journal. Vol. CXVI Nos. 4-6 (December 1950). London, The Royal Geographical Society, 1950. 8vo. pp. 137-171 (entire volume: x, 137-262, (6) pp., with 28 photographic illustrations, numerous sketch maps in the text, and two folding maps, one in colour, loosely inserted). Original printed blue wrappers.
€ 800
The famous British explorer's extensive account of his expedition in the interior of Oman; much of the territory crossed now is part of the United Arab Emirates. Thesiger (1910-2003) set out from Abu Dhabi in 1948; the large and detailed colour map shows his journeys from 1945 to 1950; Thesiger later expanded on the subject to produce his classic travelogue, "Arabian Sands" (1959). Thesiger's highly regarded photographs depict the desert of the Empty Quarter, a settlement at Liwa, sand vegetation after heavy rain, a falconer mounted on a camel, a peregrine falcon with a caught hare, peregrine falcons on the blocks, Sheikh Wahiba of Yahahif and a young Wahiba girl, a thoroughbred Batina camel, the Farai well in Wahib country, portraits of Musallim bin al-Kamam and Salim bin Kabina, and a view of Jabal Kaur from the wadi Saifam. The paper was read in the presence of the Second Secretary at the Saudi Arabian Embassy, H.E. Abdul Rahman Halassie. {BN#31519} (more)
[Arabic Manuscript]. Collection of texts in Arabic. Istanbul, 908 AH [1502/03 AD]. 8vo (18 x 13 cm). 78 ff., naskh script with features of ta'liq, in several different hands. Half-leather Oriental binding with a flap and pasted boards.
€ 2,500
| A collective volume with texts in Arabic on Arabic manuscript paper (for ff. 43-45 and from f. 73 onwards European paper is used). It was copied by Ahmad b. 'Uthman al-Arzan al-Rumi in the city of Qustantiniyya (Istanbul) in one of the eight madrasas (colophon in a later hand on f. 78a). - 1) ff. 1v-13v. Fragment without beginning or end, and possibly misbound, of a gloss on logic (Qala-aqulu structure). Possibly this is the commentary by Qutb al-Din al-Razi al-Tahtani (d. 766/1364) on al-Risala al-Shamsiyya fi al-Quawa 'id al-Maniqiyya, by Nagm al-Din 'Ali b. 'Umar al-Quazwini al-Katibi (d. 675/1276 or 693/1294), Gal G I, 466. Outb al-Din is mentioned on f. 1v. Heavy interlinear and marginal glossing. - 2) ff. 14b-59b. Gloss on logic (Qala-aqulu structure), apparently by al-Sayyid al-Sharif, whose name is mentioned variously. This is the gloss by al-Sayyid al-Sharif al-Gurgani (d. 816/1413), GAL G II, 216, on the commentary by Muhammad b. Qutb al-Din Muhammad al-Razi al-Tahtani (d. 766/1364), GAL G II, 209, on al-Risala al-Shamsiyya fi al-Qawa 'id al-Mantiqiyya, by Magm al-Din 'Ali b. 'Umar al-Qazwini al-Katibi (d. 675/1276, or 693/1294), GAL G I, 466, as confirmed by comparison with MS Berlin Mq. 63 (= Ahlwardt 5260). - 3) ff. 60a-78b. Acephalous fragment of a gloss on logic (Qala-aqulu structure). In the margin of f. 60a is the name "'Sayyid Tasdiqat'", which may indicate that his is another gloss by al-Sayyid al-Sharif al-Gurgani. {BN#31739} (more) |
[Arabic Manuscript]. A miscellany of curriculum texts on Arabic morphology. N. p., 1206 AH [1791 AD]. 121 ff. on Arabic manuscript paper, Ottoman naskh script, illuminated headings (sar lawh) at the beginning of each text, all texts set in a frame. Full-leather Oriental binding with flap, blind-tooled ornamentation.
€ 2,000
| A miscellany of curriculum texts on Arabic morphology with texts in Arabic, copied by Ali al K... (colophon at the end of text no. 5, where a more precise date is given: 16 Rabi I 1206 [1791]). Contents: 1) pp. 2-99. Marah al-Arwah, by Ahmad b. `Ali b. Mas`ud (fl. beginning 8/14th cent.), GAL G II, 21. - 2) al-Tasrif al-`Izzi by `Izz al-Din `Abd al-Wahhab b. Ibrahim al-Zangani (655/1257), GAL G I, 283. - 3) al-Maqsud fil-Tasrif, anonymous, though sometimes ascribed to Abu Hanifa al-Nu`man b. Thabit (d. 150/767), GAL S I, 287. - 4) Bana´ al-Af`al. Anonymous work on the morphology of the Arabic verb. - 5) Amthila. Paradigm of the Arabic verb. Text in gadwal. - 6) Shorter notes, prayers, quotations, etc., in Arabic and Turkish. {BN#31733} (more) |
Arabic postcard album. Collection of 29 postcards, original photographs and stereo photographs. Mostly Algeria, Egypt, Yemen, Arabia, compiled c. 1950. In cloth postcard album (c. 1910) with Austrian owner's stamp.
€ 600
| Interesting collection of postcards and photographs, depicting Bedouins on horseback (2), Muslims at prayer (5), camels (13, with 2 original photographs and 3 stereoscopic views), falconers with their birds (3), and other views and scenes of cultural and ethnographic interest (Hajjis on their way to Mecca, Friday at the cemetery of El-Kettar, an old Arabic city, Arabs in the desert, an Arabic festival in Cairo, and a stereoscopic image of a camel market in Gizeh). Also included is an engraved view of a caravan cavalcade on its way to Mecca (from vol. 2 of Paul Lucas's "Voyage", Amsterdam 1720). Stereocopic images and engraving stored loosely in the album; other photographs and postcards inserted into slotted album leaves. {BN#23659} (more) |
Artin Pacha, Yacoub. Contribution a l'Étude du Blason en Orient. (Cairo, Imprimerie Nationale d'Égypte for) Bernard Quaritch in London, 1902. 8vo. XV, (1), 244 pp. With 76 lithographed plates (56 in colour). Original illustrated giltstamped cloth.
€ 2,800
| First edition, no. 7 of 300 numbered copies on velin. Amply illustrated, colourful work by Yacoub Artin (1842-1919), Egyptian historian and former Minister of Education, on the origin of armorial bearings in the Middle East. The plates depict more than 300 coats of arms, many in striking full colour, with descriptions. Includes the study of Hieroglyphs, the Crescent, the Star of David, and many more symbols often found on Middle Eastern crests. "A strange collection of these symbols, drawn from plants and animals, conventional ornaments, and articles of domestic use, are figured in the plates of Artin Pasha's sumptuous work" (The Calcutta Review 118 [1904], p. 257). - Binding slightly dusty; some wear to spine-ends. Scarce. - OCLC 3282918. {BN#26193} (more) |
[Arvieux, Laurent d']. Voyage dans la Palestine, vers le Grand Emir, Chef des Princes Arabes du Desert, connus sous le nom de Bedouins, ou d'Arabes Scenites, qui se disent la vraie posterité d'Ismael fils d'Abraham [...]. Avec la description générale de l'Arabie, faite par Ismael Abulfeda, traduite en François [...] par M. [Jean] de la Roque. Amsterdam, Steenhouwer und Uytwerf, 1718. 8vo. (46), 342, (6) pp. With engr. frontispiece and 4 engr. plates (1 folding). Contemp. calf with giltstamped red label to gilt spine. Marbled pastedowns.
€ 2,000
| Second edition of this travelogue, first published from the author's posthumous papers by La Roque in 1717. D'Arvieux (1635-1702) lived in the Levant for a long time, spending six years at Aleppo as French consul, and collected these important observations on the Arabic Bedouins of the area. "His observations, which departed greatly from what had been formerly reported about the Bedouins, were received with doubt, but were confirmed by later travellers such as Niebuhr" (cf. Henze I, 101). The plates show costumes and the Bedouin camp on Mt. Carmel (with a view of Haifa). - Binding rubbed and slightly bumped. Old catalogue entry mounted on front pastedown; t. p. has ms. ownership of the library of St. Lambert (dated 1749). Slight worming to beginning and end. Browned throughout due to paper. - Tobler 108. Röhricht 1112 & 1207. Hage Chahine 180. Gay 3452. Henze I, 101. {BN#26643} (more) |
[Arvieux, Laurent d']. Beschreibung der Reise nach Palestina, zu dem Grossen Emir, dem Oberhaupte unter den Fürsten der Araber in der Wüsten, welche unter dem Titel der Bedouiten oder der arabischen Sceniten bekannt sind, und welche vorgeben, sie wären die rechten Nachkommen Ismaels, des Sohnes Abraham [...] Benebst einer allgemeinen Beschreibung von Arabien [...]. Leipzig, Braun, 1740. 8vo. (22), 286, (2) pp. T. p. printed in red and black. With engr. frontispiece, folding plate, and 4 engr. plates (1 folding). Modern marbled calf with gilt title to spine.
€ 1,800
| First German edition, first published from the author's posthumous papers in Paris in 1717. D'Arvieux (1635-1702) lived in the Levant for a long time, spending six years at Aleppo as French consul, and collected these important observations on the Arabic Bedouins of the area. "His observations, which departed greatly from what had been formerly reported about the Bedouins, were received with doubt, but were confirmed by later travellers such as Niebuhr" (cf. Henze I, 101). The plates show costumes and the Bedouin camp on Mt. Carmel. - Some offsetting to text; insignificant browning; slight waterstain near end. Author and bibliographical note supplied in ink at upper edge of t. p. - Röhricht 1113. Fromm 739. Cf. Cox I, 220. Gay 3453. Tobler 108 & 115. {BN#24733} (more) |
Atai. Hadaiku'l-hakaik fi-tekmileti' s-sakaik. [Istanbul], H 1268 (= 1852 AD). Folio. 2 pts. in 1 vol. (16), 771, (1) pp. Red half calf with blindstamped spine and covers.
€ 850
| Biographies of Ottoman jurists. - Somewhat browned due to paper. Binding rubbed and bumped at extremities; cloth wrinkled; rear cover somewhat duststained. {BN#19369} (more) |
Attar, Farid al-Din. Tezkereh-i-evliâ. Manuscrit ouigour de la Bibliothèque Nationale. Reproduit par l'héliogravure typographique. Paris, Imprimerie Nationale, 1890. Folio. (4), 392 pp. Original printed boards with later cloth spine.
€ 350
| First edition of this Uyghur work ("Mémorial des Saints") by Farid al-Din `Attar (d. ca. 1230), preserved in a ms. in the Bibliothèque Nationale. Printed in the language's characteristic Arabic-derived alphabet. - Edges rubbed and bumped; covers stained. Interior foxed throughout. An uncut, untrimmed copy. Collection orientale, tome 16: 2me série, tome II (wants the first volume containing the French translation). - OCLC 7524145. {BN#25008} (more) |
Australian Stud Book. The Australian Stud Book, Containing Pedigrees of Racehorses etc., From the Earliest Accounts from the earliest accounts to the year 1877[-1993] inclusive. Vol. 1- 39. Melbourne and Sidney, Walker, May and Co., 1878-1993. 39 volumes, bound in 41. Black cloth with gilt titles to spine.
€ 12,500
| The complete run from the first volume to 1993, all volumens in their original first edition. The Australian Stud Book began in 1878 as a private venture by A. & William C. Yuille, Melbourne bloodstock agents who published nine volumes. New Zealand horses were included in the ASB until Volume VII appeared in 1900. The copyright was sold in 1910 to the Australian Jockey Club (AJC) and the Victoria Racing Club (VRC), who since then administer matters concerning the breeding of Thoroughbred racehorses. Vols. 1-25 rebound in matching cloth. - Rare. {BN#28999} (more) |
Avicenna. Zusammengesetzte Heilmittel der Araber. Nach dem fünften Buch des Canons von Ebn Sina aus dem Arabischen übersetzt von Dr. Sontheimer. Freiburg/Br., Herder, 1845. 8vo. (4), 288, (2), VIII pp. Contemp. half calf with giltstamped spine. Blue endpapers. All edges gilt.
€ 850
A collection of medical recipes from book five of Avicenna's famous "Qanun". The compendium, written in Arabic, was widely translated throughout the Middle Ages and remained the basis of medical training in the West as late as the mid-17th century. It continues in use to this day in parts of the Arab world. Through this encyclopedic work, the author exterted "perhaps a wider influence in the eastern and western hemispheres than any other Islamic thinker" (PMM). "The 'Qanun' [...] contains some of the most illuminating thoughts pertaining to distinction of mediastinitis from pleurisy; contagious nature of phthisis; distribution of diseases by water and soil; careful description of skin troubles; of sexual diseases and perversions; of nervous ailments" (Sarton, Introduction to the History of Science). - Extremeties rubbed and bumped. Some browning and foxing throughout; contemporary ownership to title page. {BN#31844} (more)
Avril, Adolphe, Baron d'. L'Arabie contemporaine. Avec la description du pèlerinage de la Mecque et une nouvelle carte géographique de Kiepert. Paris, E. Maillet & Challamel Ainé, 1868. 8vo. (4), 313, (3) pp. Contemp. red morocco on four raised bands, with blindstamped covers and giltstamped title to spine. Marbled endpapers.
€ 2,500
| First and only edition of this rare description of the Arabian Peninsula and its inhabitants, as well as of the Muslims' annual pilgrimage to Mecca. The French diplomat Louis-Marie-Adolphe Lévesque, Baron d'Avril (1822-1904), served as Minister Plenipotentiary. Includes Heinrich Kiepert's groundbreaking map of the region (in German, folding, with slight tear near inner edge). Interior somewhat foxed throughout; altogether a good, very appealingly bound copy in excellent condition. Sold for £2,800 at Sotheby's (Oct 14, 1999, lot 61: Burrell copy). - Macro, Bibliography of the Arabian Peninsula, 810. Pirenne 309. {BN#24978} (more) |
