Hiob LUDOLF. A new history of Ethiopia. London, 1684.

Ethiopia had always exerted a fascination for Europeans as a Christian land beyond the borders of Islam. Hiob Ludolf wrote the definitive early work on the subject, and we have the second English edition (the first in English to have the map). It’s a work full of obscure information and has wonderful illustrations. A New History of Ethiopia, 1684, is an important book from the pre-scientific area and our copy is in a handsome contemporary binding.

The travels of Ibn Batuta. London, 1829.

The Travels of Ibn Battuta, 1829, is the first edition in English of the account of an African Muslim making the Pilgrimage to Mecca, and his travels through the Islamic world in the early fourteenth century. A work of great importance for Battuta’s acute observations; it seems strange that there was no English publication until the nineteenth century. Published in a small edition for the Oriental Translation Fund, it is a scarce book. Our copy is beautifully preserved in the original cloth with just the slightest wear to its paper label.

Edward LEAR (illustrator); Lord TENNYSON.
Poems by Alfred, Lord Tennyson illustrated by Edward Lear. London, 1829.

Edward Lear and Alfred Lord Tennyson had been friends for a large part of their lives. Lear produced many drawings illustrative of Tennyson’s poems from the 1850’s up to his death in 1888. In memory of this friendship, a memorial volume was produced in 1889, Poems by Alfred Lord Tennyson illustrated by Edward Lear, celebrating their mutual love of Greece and the classical world. Tennyson signed the entire of edition of 100 copies. As the poet laureate, most of the edition went into distinguished libraries including the Royal Collection and copies are quite scarce on the open market. Our copy is fine in the original half morocco binding.

Francis Hamilton BUCHANAN. An Account of the Kingdom of Nepal and of the Territories Annexed to this Dominion by the House of Gorkha. Edinburgh, 1819.

One of the earliest books on Nepal is An Account of the Kingdom of Nepal, 1819, by Francis Buchanan. Buchanan accompanied Knox to Nepal and spent two years on the frontier collecting information. He also visited the Teshoo Lama and travelled to Bhutan with Bogle. It is a surprisingly rare book and we are delighted to have the copy belonging to the diplomat George Bosanquet (1791-1866), who was the son of Jacob, former Chairman of the East India Company.

Apsley CHERRY-GARRARD. The worst journey in the world. London, 1922.

One of the great classics of Antarctic literature is The Worst Journey in the World. Antarctic 1910-1913. Chery-Garrard survived the winter journey on Scott’s ill-fated Terra Nova expedition and his account is full of thrilling adventure. Long considered the best written of all the narratives, it probably owes that claim to the fact that George Bernard Shaw was heavily involved in its writing. The book is quite a fragile production and easily soiled but our copy is in tip-top shape.

[Anna BRASSEY]. A cruise in the "Eothen". 1872. London, 1873.

In A Cruise in the “Eothen”, Lady Brassey describes a cruise to Canada and the United States, the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the St. Lawrence River as well as the northeastern United States coast from Boston to Norfolk in 1872. The work is illustrated with her own tipped-in photographs. Lady Brassey was an accomplished photographer and in 1873 became a member of the Photographic Society of London exhibiting photographs there that same year. The photographs include portraits of friends and family and fellow passengers, together with views of people in Quebec, Montreal, Ottawa, Niagara, Pictou, Halifax, Boston, New York, and Washington. Truth to tell they are not the best quality but do add a charming ‘hand-made’ feel to the book.