The Itinerary Ludovico de Varthema of Bologna from 1502 to 1508.

First recorded visit by a European to Mecca

A beautifully printed edition of Varthema's Itinerary, one of the most remarkable travel books of the Renaissance, describing the first recorded visit by a European to Mecca, the first account of a traveller reaching India via the Red Sea, and to return by the Cape of Good Hope.

Varthema spent several years to travelling in the East at the beginning of the sixteenth century, and his Itinerario is one of the key authorities concerning Portuguese discoveries in the East.

In 1503, Varthema travelled to Damascus via Cairo and the Lebanon. At Damascus he joined the Hajj to Medina and Mecca. An interesting aspect of his description of the Hijaz is that it predates the Ottoman occupation of 1520. Here he learned colloquial Arabic and acknowledged Islam. From Jeddah, Varthema went on to Yemen, Aden, Dhofar, Muscat, Hormuz, Herat and Shiraz, then to India, Banda and the Moluccas, for which he provided the first reliable accounts. On the return leg of his journey, he spent some time at Cochin where he was employed by the Portuguese.

4to (26.5 x 20 cm); edition limited to 975 copies printed on Japon vellum, uncut and unopened; publisher's original vellum backed blue cloth boards gilt, gilt medallion to upper cover, a fine copy; lxxxv, 121 [2] pp.