Journal D’un Voyage Dans La Turquie-D’Asie Et La Perse, Fait en 1807 et 1808.
Paris and Marseille, J.-B.-É.-É. Lenormand and J. II Mossy 1809.
8vo (210 x 126 mm.). .). [iv], 128, 52p. Printed on light blue paper.
Contemporary polished calf backed stiff boards covered in tree-calf patterned paper (boards bowed, a few scuffs), gilt flat spine and black morocco label, yellow edges.
Only Edition of this report of the Gardane Mission, Napoleon’s delegation to Persia and Turkey that sought an alliance against the British. General C.-M. Gardane (1766-1818) led the effort accompanied by, i.a., his brother, also the mission’s secretary, who authored this account. From September 1807, the author details their daily itinerary with information on the size of towns and cities, topography, vegetation, ancient ruins, military entanglements, scattered Catholic populations and religious controversy around Wahhabism. He reports on manuscripts in Tabriz and decapitated corpses in Tehran. He includes the rules for Jews and Christians in Damascus and recounts the festivities — including feats of strength, fireworks and cross-dressing male dancers — for the Frenchmen during diplomatic receptions. In June 1808, Paul-Ange returned to France, where this account ends. The index provides the full list of all 150 cities they visited, including the travel times between stops.
Appended to the book is a transliterated Italian-Farsi-Turkish dictionary and grammar (50p.) composed by the Georgian Prince, Teimuraz Bagrationi (1782-1846). Two annotators neatly added eighty words in Arabic in the margins. In nice condition (occasional pale stains, one small tear not affecting the text), many lower edges uncut.
¶Nader, “Travelogues of the 18th-20th Centuries” in Encyclopædia Iranica X: 146-50; The Sefik E. Atabey Collection 477; Quérard, La France littéraire 3: 257.
Price: $2,400.00