Alexander Orlowski (1777 – 1832) was a Polish painter and lithographer. Of modest birth, his artistic talents grew from a very young age, and he was soon discovered by Izabela Czartoryska, a Polish aristocrat, art collector and writer who founded Poland's first museum in Krakow. Czartoryska financed Orlowski's artistic training with the French painter Jean Pierre Norblin, court artist to the Czartoryska family. At the age of 16, Orlowski decided to volunteer to fight in the Kościuszko insurrection. Wounded in battle, he returned to Warsaw, where Prince Józef Poniatowski financed the rest of his artistic studies. Orlowski lived in Poniatowski's Palace and was expected to make entertaining portraits and sketches of the Prince's guests for their entertainment. In 1802 he moved to St. Petersburg. His drawings were well received at court, and in 1819, after a period travelling around Russia, Orlowski was awarded an official position in the Russian government painting military costumes. Orlowski continued sketching throughout his adventures.

4to (36.7 x 27 cm); engraved title page with large contemporary hand-coloured vignette by J. Swaine, 16 aquatint plates, coloured by a contemporary hand, the first 8 engraved by J. Godby, a further 8 plates inserted from Costume of the Russian Army (1807), (marginal finger-soiling and light spotting concentrated to margins, short split at foot of gutter affecting a number of plates but without loss, lacking frontispiece from Costumes of the Russian Army); contemporary brown half-morocco over brown marbled boards, titled label pasted onto front board, extremities rubbed, a very good copy.