A later issue consisting of a reissue of the 1857–58 edition, with cancel titles (see Cordier, Sinica, 770; Caillet, 5294; Numa Broc, Asie, 247–249).
At the end of the volume, volume I is illustrated with a folding hand-coloured map inserted as a plate.
Some foxing, notably to the boards.
A native of Caylus, near Montauban, Évariste Huc (1813–1860) pursued his studies in Toulouse before entering the seminary of the Congregation of Saint Lazarus in 1836.
Ordained a priest in 1839, he left for China as a missionary.
After five years’ residence, he was entrusted with an extensive journey of exploration and evangelisation across the country: between 1844 and 1846 he undertook a major expedition that brought him to Lhasa, which he succeeded in entering disguised as a lama. He remained there for six weeks before being discovered and expelled back to China.
The account of his journey, published in Paris in 1850, enjoyed considerable success. The present work, devoted to the history of Christianity in China, is divided into four parts: From the apostolate of Saint Thomas to the discovery of the Cape of Good Hope. – From that discovery to the establishment of the Tartar-Manchu dynasty in China. – From the establishment of that dynasty to the death of Emperor Kangxi. – From the death of that emperor to the Treaty of Tientsin in 1858.
It also contains numerous documents on ancient religions and on occultism in general (see Caillet).