Edward Daniel CLARKE
Voyage en Russie, en Tartarie et en Turquie
Chez Fantin|à Paris 1812|13 x 21 cm|2 volumes reliés
First edition, rare, illustrated with 3 maps and 2 plans, including the general map of Crimea and the plan of the capital of the Don Cossacks. Rare first French edition, translated by Emmanuel de Laubespin, which was withdrawn from sale. Quérard: "The [French] government did not permit the sale of this translation; only a few copies were distributed".
Contemporary full brown calf binding. Smooth spine decorated with 4 quatrefoil tools and multiple fillets. Red morocco title and volume labels. Decorative border on the board doubled with gilt fillet. Interior fillet. Wear to spine and boards. Volume 2 label scraped with loss of leather. 3 corners slightly bumped. Some rare and pale foxing. Despite defects, handsome copy overall.
English mineralogist and archaeologist teaching at Cambridge University where he became librarian. Clarke was an tireless traveler throughout his life, first in Italy, Scandinavia, Greece, Russia, Turkey, Egypt and the Holy Land; travels which allowed him to collect many minerals and make precise observations of physical and human geography. Besides his critical observations, notably on Tsar Paul, which earned him a ban from the French government, Clarke's journey (1799-1802) is particularly interesting since he traveled beyond the European limits of Russia and dealt with the Don Cossacks whose life, organization and customs he describes. He then descended to the Sea of Azov, traveled in Crimea, to Odessa, and to Constantinople. The author's principal quality is his gift of observation and his multiple interests, as much for insects, venomous snakes as for the customs of Russians and Cossacks or commerce on the Black Sea.
Contemporary full brown calf binding. Smooth spine decorated with 4 quatrefoil tools and multiple fillets. Red morocco title and volume labels. Decorative border on the board doubled with gilt fillet. Interior fillet. Wear to spine and boards. Volume 2 label scraped with loss of leather. 3 corners slightly bumped. Some rare and pale foxing. Despite defects, handsome copy overall.
English mineralogist and archaeologist teaching at Cambridge University where he became librarian. Clarke was an tireless traveler throughout his life, first in Italy, Scandinavia, Greece, Russia, Turkey, Egypt and the Holy Land; travels which allowed him to collect many minerals and make precise observations of physical and human geography. Besides his critical observations, notably on Tsar Paul, which earned him a ban from the French government, Clarke's journey (1799-1802) is particularly interesting since he traveled beyond the European limits of Russia and dealt with the Don Cossacks whose life, organization and customs he describes. He then descended to the Sea of Azov, traveled in Crimea, to Odessa, and to Constantinople. The author's principal quality is his gift of observation and his multiple interests, as much for insects, venomous snakes as for the customs of Russians and Cossacks or commerce on the Black Sea.
€1,400