Rare, antiquarian, used & out-of-print books on travel in China, for sale at Horizon Books.
ABEL, Clarke; Narrative of a Journey in the Interior of China, and of a Voyage to and From That Country in the Years 1816 and 1817; containing an Account of . . . Lord Amherst's Embassy to the Court of Peking & Observations on the Countries which it Visited. London, Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme and Brown, 1818, First edition, 4to [27.5 x 22 cm]; xvi, [i, errata sheet], 420 pp, 19 aquatint plates of which 8 are hand colored, 4 maps including 3 folding, other illus including full-page, tables, index, appendices, errata, later half calf, gilt spine title lettering on red and black leather labels, gilt design on spine, lightly foxed, hand colored armorial bookplate on endpaper, lower margin of title restored, very good+ sound and complete copy.
The author, a member of the Geological Society, was chief medical officer and naturalist on the expedition. Abbey Travel 537. Lust 496. Tooley 1. Hill 1: 'Abel, an English botanist, was the official naturalist attached to William Pitt Amherst's embassy. His extensive collection of natural history specimens, made during the voyage, was a almost entirely lost in the shipwreck of the Alcest. . . Lord Amherst's embassy was a failure through his refusal to kowtow to the Emperor of China. On the voyage home, Dr Abel visited the Cape Colony, and his observations on the geology of the Cape are highly esteemed. Also included are interesting accounts of visits to Madeira, Rio de Janeiro, Batavia, Macao, Manila and St. Helena and Napoleon. The plates including attractive views, natural history subjects including snake of Java after Sydeham Edwards and fish, orangoutang, botanical plates, including after William Hooker. The appendices including the itinerary, lists of new plants, a description of the orang-outang, official documents of the embassy, meteorology, etc.
US$2800. bookID # 11014
ANON, ; The Columbian Atlas of the World containing Large-scale Colored maps of each State and Territory in the United States, Provinces of Canada, Every Foreign Country, the Continents and their Subdivisions. Buffalo, NY, Garretson, Cox and Company, 1897, , folio [37 x 31 cm or 14.5 x 12 inches]; 159 pp, 156 pages of colored maps, charts, including many double page, title printed in red and black, orig blue pictorial gilt and blind-stamped cloth, gilt title lettering on cover, a little worn at spine ends, corners, very good+ clean and sound copy.
This is not to be confused with the Columbian World's Fair atlas nor the Columbian Atlas of the World We Live In, which was in much smaller format. This atlas is quite large and filled with very detailed colored maps, starting with fine double-page maps of the world and of North America. The maps of the USA include the whole country, individual states and city maps showing streets (Boston, NY city, Brooklyn, Buffalo, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington DC, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Chicago, Detroit, St. Paul, Minneapolis, St. Louis, St. Joseph, Kansas city, New Orleans, San Francisco from Rand McNally Co, plus others as insets). Canadian maps include country, provinces and territories, some provinces showing counties. Other maps include: Mexico, Central America, West Indies, South America (plus other maps of regions of South America), Europe and individual countries, Polar area, Asia, double-page of Palestine with Jerusalem inset, Turkey and its provinces, Indochina, India, Japan, Persia, double of Africa showing colonial borders, South Africa, Egypt with Cairo inset, North Africa, Abyssinia, Australia, New Zealand, etc, plus other charts. Maps have city, province, county indexes in margins.
US$300. bookID # 12789
ANSON, George; A Voyage Round the World, in the Years MDCCXL, I, II, III, IV. . . Compiled from Papers & Other Materials of the Right Honourable George Lord Anson, and Published under His Direction by Richard Walter, M.A. Chaplain of His Majesty's Ship the Centurion. London, Printed for the Author by John and Paul Knapton, 1748, First edition, first issue with page 319 shown as 219, 4to [26 x 21 cm]; [xxxiv], 417 pp, complete with 42 folding copper engraved maps, plans, charts, views and with the subscriber list, contemporary full calf, rebacked with later leather spine, gilt title lettering on leather spine label, edge wear on cover, map with tear, endpaper bookplate, few margins with short tear, very light foxing on few margins, else clean, unmarked, very good.
This classic travel narrative is an account of the first attempt by a naval expedition to circumnavigate the world, with the purpose being to plunder Spanish colonies in the Pacific, with only one of the eight ships returning, with Anson, who later became an admiral, taking a Spanish treasure ship, the Manila galleon, off the Philippines. Sabin 1625. 'Anson's voyage is remembered as a classic tale of endurance and leadership in the face of fearful disasters, but to the British public of 1744 it was the treasure of the galleon, triumphantly paraded through the streets of London, which did something to restore national self-esteem' [DNB]. Hill I, 318: 'A masterpiece of descriptive travel. . . . Anson's voyage appears to have been the most popular book of maritime adventure of the eighteenth century'. Cox I, 49: 'This famous and unfortunate expedition, consisting at the start of eight ships, was sent under the command of George Anson at the beginning of the war with Spain, to harass the Spaniards on the western coast of South America. Seven ships were lost around Cape Horn and on the coast of Chile and out of 900 men, 600 perished. The primary object of the expedition was not attained, but by the capture of the Manila Galleon near China, Anson and the surviving members of his crew reached England much the richer. This account is the official one. . . It is a model of what such literature should be'. Famous for its many engraved
US$4200. bookID # 11767
ATKINSON, Thomas Witlam; Travels in the Regions of the Upper and Lower Amoor and the Russian Acquisitions on the confines of India and China, with Adventures among the Mountain Kirghis, the Manjours, Manyargs, Toungouz, Touzemtz, Goldi, Gelyaks; the Hunting & Pastoral Tribes. London, Hurst and Blackett, 1860, First edition, 8vo [26 x 17 cm]; xiii, 570 pp, color lithographed (chromolithograph) plate, 83 engravings, folding map by Arrowsmith, index, half title page, orig pictorial & blind-stamped cloth, gilt picture of horse-drawn sleigh, gilt title lettering on spine & cover, spine faded but lettering visible, few leaves with moderate foxing including frontis, light edge wear, endpaper creased, very good.
Abbey Travel 401. Cordier 2781. Nerhood 239. The author provides material from his journey 1848-55 and issues a special warning to the British about Russian ambitions in the area. He believed himself to have been the first westerner in many of the areas he visited in Central Asia, Cashmere, etc, and he writes a detailed account with special emphasis on travel difficulties, weather conditions, resources and the manners and customs of the people, caravan routes, religious tensions. The appendix lists the animals, birds, plants found in Siberia, Mongolia, Kirghis Steppe, Amoor.
US$450. bookID # 11270
BELCHER, Captain Sir Edward; Narrative of a Voyage Round the World Performed in Her Majesty's Ship Sulphur, During the Years 1836-1843, including details of the Naval Operations in China, from Dec. 1840 to Nov. 1841. London, Henry Colburn, Publisher, 1843, First edition, 8vo [24 x 15 cm]; 2 volumes, xxii, 387; vii, 474 pp, complete set with 19 engraved plates with tissue guards, 2 frontis's, 3 folding engraved maps are in the pocket of volume I, engraved illustrations in text, index, orig blind-stamped cloth, gilt spine title lettering, light wear to rear joint of volume II, internal hinges with old re-enforcement, cover lightly rubbed, interiors clean and fine, overall near fine set, unmarked.
Sabin 4390. National Maritime Museum Catalogue 172. Hill I, p. 20: "The voyage was intended for the exploration and survey of the Pacific coast of North and South America and the Pacific Basin. The various harbors along the coast of California and northwest to Alaska were surveyed, and a months journey in open boats was made up the Sacramento River from San Francisco Bay. The Hawaiian Islands, the Marquesas, the Society Islands, the Tonga Islands, the New Hebrides, the Solomon Islands, New Guinea, etc., were visited." The plates include views of City of Panama, Port of Honolulu, Mount St. Elias, New Archangel, Fort George at Astoria, Port Anna Maria at Marquesas, as well as several of native peoples, sea scenes and Chinese soldiers. Belcher boarded at Panama and acted as commander for the rest of the expedition, after Captain Beechey became ill. Belcher had earlier sailed with Beechey on the Blossom as surveyor. Volume II has a large section by Richard Brinsley Hinds, surgeon to the expedition, on vegetation in various parts of the world, with its own contents page. An excellent set of one of the most important nineteenth century circumnavigations.
US$2000. bookID # 12813
BICKMORE, Albert S.; Travels in the East Indian Archipelago. New York, D. Appleton and Company, 1869, First edition, 8vo [24 x 16 cm]; 553, [vi, ads] pp, frontis with tissue guard, 36 wood engravings on 31 plates (complete), 2 fldg maps, tables in appendix, index, orig pictorial gilt cloth, gilt vignette and lettering on spine, spine ends & joints worn and chipped with repair, light foxing on some leaves, name on endpaper, partly unopened, minor foxing on few leaves, else clean, very good copy.
"He travelled through the Malay Archipelago & the Dutch East Indies collecting shells & birds, penetrated into a part of China unexplored by foreigners, and visited the little known Ainu of Northern Japan." [DNB]. The author traveled in the Strait of Sundra and Batavia, Samarang, Surabaya, Macassar, Celebes, Timur (Timor), Aboina, Ceram, Banda, Buru, Ternate, Minahassa, Sumatra, Padang, Palembang, Banca, Singapore, etc and describes nature, the peoples, customs, geography, tropical fruit, etc. He went on to become the co-founder of the American Museum of Natural History in New York.
US$150. bookID # 10956
BICKMORE, Albert S.; Travels in the East Indian Archipelago. New York, D. Appleton and Company, 1869, First edition, 8vo [24 x 16 cm]; 553, [vi, ads] pp, frontis with tissue guard, 36 wood engravings on 31 plates (complete), 2 fldg maps, tables in appendix, index, orig pictorial gilt cloth, gilt vignette and lettering on spine, spine ends & joints worn with repair, light foxing on some leaves, but overall quite clean, very good.
"He travelled through the Malay Archipelago & the Dutch East Indies collecting shells & birds, penetrated into a part of China unexplored by foreigners, and visited the little known Ainu of Northern Japan." [DNB]. The author traveled in the Strait of Sundra and Batavia, Samarang, Surabaya, Macassar, Celebes, Timur (Timor), Aboina, Ceram, Banda, Buru, Ternate, Minahassa, Sumatra, Padang, Palembang, Banca, Singapore, etc and describes nature, the peoples, customs, geography, tropical fruit, etc. He went on to become the co-founder of the American Museum of Natural History in New York.
US$210. bookID # 9081
BISHOP, William Henry; Mexico, California, and Arizona being a New and Revised Edition of Old Mexico and Her Lost Provinces. New York, Harper & Brothers, 1889, First edition thus, being a revision with expanded material, 8vo [20.5 x 14 cm]; xii, 569, [6, publisher's ads] pp, frontis map, over 100 illustrations including many full-page, maps including one of the railroads of Mexico and southern US, portraits, index, orig red pictorial cloth, gilt lettering on spine and cover, spine worn but intact, spine ends chipped, name on endpaper, internal hinge cracked but firm, interior is clean and very good in good cover, sound.
Cowan p. 19 (1900 edition), Eberstadt 157: 32. Welch p. 153. Cole 50 (1889 edition). Six Guns 215. Not in Sabin or Howes. Part I is an account of travel in Mexico while part II is an account of travel in California and Arizona (with mention of the OK corral, Doc Holiday, Wyatt Earp, Tombstone, etc). There are many interesting illustrations including of downtown San Francisco, China town, Los Angles and other towns. Well illustrated. This expanded version has an additional 50 pages.
US$50. bookID # 12066
BLAND, David; A History of Book Illustration; The Illuminated Manuscript and the Printed Book. Cleveland and New York, The World Publishing Company, [1958], First edition, 4to [28 x 19 cm]; 448 pp, 17 fine mounted color plates including frontis, 395 illustrations, mostly on plates (complete), bibliog, index, orig cloth, gilt title lettering on spine and cover, name on endpaper, fine and clean condition.
A classic and highly respected reference work covering the earliest books, oriental and Byzantine illustrations, medieval, Hebrew Illumination, China, Japan, illustration during the period of the first printed books, up to the twentieth century. Beautifully illustrated from the original sources.
US$40. bookID # 12657
BOXER, C. R. (editor); South China in the Sixteenth Century; being the narratives of Galeote Pereira, Gaspar da Cruz, Martin de Rada. London, The Hakluyt Society, 1953, First Edition, 8vo [22.5 x 15 cm]; xcii, 388 pp, 12 plates including frontis & 2 double-page plans, 8 maps including 3 fldg, bibliog, table of emperors to 1912, glossary of Chinese terms, names, index, orig cloth, gilt vignette on front cover, gilt spine title lettering, spine slightly faded but fine and clean, gilt bright, with a loose leaf from publisher on their publications.
This volume contains three narratives describing South China as it appeared to Portuguese and Spanish visitors in 1550-1575, with an extensive 74 page introduction by the editor which gives the historical context.
US$130. bookID # 12477
BRETSCHNEIDER, E. [Emile V.]; History of European Botanical Discoveries in China. Leipzig, Zentral Antiquariat der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik, 1981, First edition was published 1898, 8vo [22 x 15 cm]; 2 volumes, xv, 624; [ii], [625]-1167, [i, ads] pp, index, orig cloth, title lettering on spines and covers, fine and clean set.
The most important reference on the history of plant collection in China from the pre-Linnean period and the middle ages through the nineteenth century and includes all the important plant collectors as well as the minor ones. This book is the source book for most of the popular works on plant hunting, China being the one of the richest sources of new plants for European gardens in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The author refers to the books and other literature produced by the plant collectors and provides detailed listings of plants collected, and descriptions of the expeditions.
US$260. bookID # 11844
BURDETT, Fred D. and Percy J. King; The Odyssey of a Pearl Hunter. London, Herbert Jenkins, [1931], First edition, 8vo [22 x 14.5 cm]; 320 pp, 16 plates from photos including frontis, index, orig green cloth with title lettering on front cover in border and spine, spine a little faded, lightly foxed on outer edge and few leaves, but a very good sound copy, clean.
Adventures from the Australian bush and the pearl fisheries of the Indian Ocean coast to the treacherous channels in the tide-race between the Pacific and the China Seas, searching for pearls and gold with descriptions of some unique characters, cannibals, aboriginal peoples and interesting experiences. 'This Odyssey is not for the squeamish folk; but every link in the story is stamped with truth' (preface). By the author of The Odyssey of an Orchid Hunter.
US$260. bookID # 8755
BURNABY, Fred; A Ride to Khiva: Travels and Adventures in Central Asia. New York, Harper & Brothers, 1877, First American edition, 8vo [19 x 13 cm]; 403 pp, 3 fldg colored maps in pockets, tables, appendices, orig pictorial gilt cloth, gilt picture on front cover, gilt spine & cover title lettering, decorations in black, expertly rebacked preserving orig cloth, some map folds split, internal hinge repaired, some marginal pencil notes, very good & sound.
A classic travel account through central Asia, Burnaby being the first to make this journey, traveling by horse, sleigh and camel through the dead of winter. He provides a rare glimpse of the Russian Empire in the making and received immediate acclaim going through 11 editions in the year of publication. The maps are of Turkestan, Russian and China with the routes in red and Central Asia. Many of the later editions omitted much of the material included here. Ghani p. 59. Yakushi B301.
US$160. bookID # 11019
CARTER, Thomas Francis; The Invention of Printing in China and its Spread Westward. New York, Columbia University Press, [1931], revised edition with corrections, additions, first edition was 1925, 8vo [23 x 16 cm]; xxvi, [i], 282, [i] pp, 40 plates including large fldg chart, partly colored, fldg map, bibliog, index, orig black cloth with gilt spine decorations and title lettering, head of spine lightly worn, very light paper browning, mainly marginal, near fine clean copy with the small bookplate of J. Wagner on the endpaper.
This edition has the addition of a biography of the author, not in the first edition. The author describes the invention of paper, use of seals, the development of block printing in China, the first printed books, the spread of block printing westward, printing with movable type in China, etc, with excellent illustrations from photos and drwgs, of printed material and methods of printing.
US$75. bookID # 7617
CLARK, Robert Sterling and Arthur de C. Sowerby; Through Shen-Kan: The Account of the Clark Expedition in North China, 1908-9. London, T. Fisher Unwin, 1912, First edition, 4to [26 x 21 cm]; [ii], vi, 247 pp, 58 plates from photos, 8 colored plates from paintings mounted on art paper, 2 colored maps including frontis and large folding in rear pocket, tables, index including all species collected, orig pictorial cloth, title lettering on spine and cover, cover bit worn and rubbed, small light ink-stamp on verso of maps, very good sound copy.
An important expedition to northern China which collected and observed birds, reptiles, batrachians, fish, geology, insects, etc, extensively illustrated. The work describes the outfitting of the expedition, the march to the Yellow River, to Yu-Lin Fu, to Hsi-an Fu, to Lan-Chou Fu, to T'Ai-Yuan, the murder of Hazrat Ali, with extensive appendices of the itineraries, species collected, meteorological observations, etc. Some 2,000 miles were covered over an eighteen month period and made new discoveries of mammals and insects. The plates include people, geology, scenes, buildings, temples, natural history, etc.
US$450. bookID # 12574
CORNEY, Peter; Voyages in the Northern Pacific; Narrative of Several Trading Voyages from 1813 to 1818 Between the Northwest Coast of America, the Hawaiian Islands and China, with a Description of the Russian Establishments on the Northwest Coast. Honolulu, H. I., Thos. G. Thrum, 1896, First separate printing, first edition was in the Literary Gazette of 1821, 12mo [18.5 x 12 cm]; x, [ii], 84, 74A-84A, 85-138, v [index], [i, ad] pp, irregular pagination but complete with chapter IX, with pages numbered 74A to 84A, orig pictorial printed heavy paper wraps, chipped at spine ends & small chip to rear cover edge, front cover and endpaper with moderate foxing, touch of foxing on some other leaves, but clean, very good copy.
Hill p. 65: 'English firms fitted out the schooner Columbia for the fur trade between the northwest coast of America and China. Peter Corney sailed as first lieutenant on this voyage which lasted more than four years. The ship was finally purchased by King Kamehameha of Hawaii. The voyage provides much interesting information concerning Hawaii and the abortive Russian settlement on Kauai. Howes 785 describes the work as 'very rare'. The title continues: 'Early Account of Kamehameha's Realm; Manners and Customs of the People, etc, and Sketch of a Cruise in the Service of the Independents of South America in 1819, with a Preface and Appendix of Valuable Confirmatory Letters Prepared by Prof. W. D. Alexander'
US$500. bookID # 8587
COWAN, Dr. J. Macqueen; The Journeys and Plant Introductions of George Forrest. London, The Royal Horticultural Society, 1952, First Edition, 8vo [25 x 16 cm]; xi, 252 pp, frontis (port), numerous illus from photos and drwgs, 5 color plates, color fldg map, appendix of his rhododendrons, index, orig cloth, dj (chipped at spine end and corners), fine & clean in good+ dj.
Forrest collected plants in Western China, Upper Burma and Eastern Tibet from 1904 to 1931 and introduced many new plants, especially rhododendrons and primulas, but many others. E. H. M. Cox wrote the chapter on his journeys with a personal account of Forrest by Sir William Wright Smith. An interesting and important book on one of the most significant plant collectors of the 20th century.
US$60. bookID # 4427
COX, E. H. M.; Farrer's Last Journey; Upper Burma 1919-20; Together With a Complete List of All Rhododendrons Collected by Reginald Farrer, and His Field Notes, Compiled by Miss Helen Maxwell, Assistant in the Herbarium of the Royal Botanical Garden, Edinburgh. London, Dulau & Co., 1926, First edition, 8vo [22.5 x 15]; xix, 244 pp, 28 illus from photos by author, including frontis, endpaper maps, appendix of rhododendrons collected by Farrer, index, orig cloth with gilt spine lettering, very lightly rubbed at edge, bookplates on endpaper, light foxing on few leaves but a very good+ solid and clean copy.
Cox had collected plants with Reginald Farrer in Burma but returned to England leaving Farrer, one of the foremost botanical collectors of his time and called the prince of Alpinists, to continue on alone. He died the following year in Burma. Cox, an important plant hunter and garden writer, who wrote Plant Hunting in China and many others, here describes Farrer's expedition and plants collected based in part on his field notes compiled by Helen T. Maxwell. The appendices are on the hardiness of plants from upper Burma and on the rhododendrons collected by Farrer.
US$230. bookID # 11561
COX, E. H. M.; Plant-Hunting in China; A History of Botanical Exploration in China and the Tibetan Marches. London, Collins, 1945, First Edition, 8vo [22 x 14.5 cm]; 279 pp, color frontis, 24 illus, index, orig cloth, gilt lettering on spine, dj (not price clipped, spine faded and chipped at edges), name on endpaper, very good in worn dj, book interior is clean and unmarked.
The author describes the history of plant hunting in the area, the source for much of today's nursery stock. He describes the exploits of major plant hunters including Fortune, Wilson, Forrest and Kingdon Ward, as well as many of the less known botanists, from Britain, America and Europe who travelled there. A readable yet detailed account by this important garden writer, who personally knew many of the important 20th century gardeners and plant hunters. Later editions did not have the frontis in color of the Primula Sinensis.
US$55. bookID # 11169
CUMMINS, J. S. (editor); The Travels and Controversies of Friar Domingo Navarrete 1618-1686. Cambridge, The Hakluyt Society, 1962, First Edition, 8vo [22.5 x 15 cm]; 2 volumes, cxx, 163, [i]; x, 165 - 475 pp, 18 plates and 6 maps, bibliog, index, orig cloth, gilt vignettes on front covers, gilt spine title lettering, dj's (spines slightly faded), fine & clean set, covers bright, a review copy with the review of David B. Quinn, noted scholar, that appeared in Quarterly Review, Liverpool University.
Navarrete was a Dominica missionary who traveled round the world but spent most of his time in China. This book is based on his published and manuscript writings and includes interesting accounts of Mexico, Philippines, Macao, China, India, Macassar, etc. An extensive introduction on Navarrete's life, character and writings, plus the original vivid style and interesting illustrations make this a useful account.
US$60. bookID # 12476
CUMMINS, J. S. (editor); The Travels and Controversies of Friar Domingo Navarrete 1618-1686. Cambridge, The Hakluyt Society, 1962, First Edition, 8vo [22.5 x 15 cm]; 2 volumes, cxx, 163, [i]; x, 165 - 475 pp, 18 plates and 6 maps, bibliog, index, orig cloth, gilt vignettes on front covers, gilt spine title lettering, dj's (not price clipped), fine set, covers bright, a review copy with the review of David B. Quinn, noted scholar, that appeared in Quarterly Review, Liverpool University, inserted.
Navarrete was a Dominica missionary who traveled round the world but spent most of his time in China. This book is based on his published and manuscript writings and includes interesting accounts of Mexico, Philippines, Macao, China, India, Macassar, etc. An extensive introduction on Navarrete's life, character and writings, plus the original vivid style and interesting illustrations make this a useful account.
US$40. bookID # 10288
ELLIOT [Elliott], Captain Robert, descriptions by Emma Roberts; Views in the East, Comprising India, Canton and the Shores of the Red Sea, with Historical and Descriptive Illustrations. London, H. Fisher, Son, & Co., 1833, First edition, 4to [27 x 18.5 cm]; 2 volumes, 60 engraved plates, each with about 4 pages of text, the plates each with tissue guards, contemporary green morocco backed boards, gilt spine title lettering in gilt decorated border, covers lightly rubbed, corner wear, internal hinges cracked but firm, some light foxing or browning, very good set.
Kaul 498: 'Describes Banaras, Jaipur, Agra, Delhi, Mathura, Hardwar, Bijapur, Kanpur, Bombay and Hiderabad with notes on Hindu temples, palaces, tombs and monuments, like the Taj Mahal, Sikandra, Fathepur Sikri and Ajanta and Ellora caves'. The plates on China include Macao, Tiger Island on Canton River, Mah Chung Keow, Canton, pagoda, Chinese trading junk, etc.
US$850. bookID # 8780
FARQUHARSON, Ronald; Confessions of a China-Hand. London, Hodder and Stoughton, [1950], First edition, 8vo [23 x 15 cm]; 224 pp, map endpapers, orig pictorial gilt cloth, spine lettering faded, edges rubbed, good clean copy, internally very good in a good cover.
An account of the author's travels in northern China, mainly in the 1930's.
US$18. bookID # 4247
FARRER, Reginald; The Rainbow Bridge. New York, London, Longmans, Green & Co,; Edward Arnold & Co, 1921, First American edition, 8vo [23 x 16 cm]; xi, 383 pp, frontis, plates, fldg map of Kansu Province of China, showing the author's route, botanical index, orig cloth, gilt title lettering on spine and cover, light staining and marks on spine, slightly foxed on title margin and few other leaves, very good.
One of the major plant collectors of the early 20th century, Farrer travelled through China and Burma, introducing many new species. In this book, the author continues the narrative described in his, The Eaves of the World, traveling in China in search of new plant species, of which many were found, especially in the Da Tung Alps, Tien Tang, etc, and he continued to Lanchow and to the Yang-tse River. There was also an American edition of this work.
US$60. bookID # 11318
FARRER, Reginald; The Rainbow Bridge. London, Edward Arnold & Co, 1926, 3rd impression, 8vo; xi, 383pp, frontis, plates, fldg map, orig cloth, very minor wear on small part of spine, fine and clean.
One of the major plant collectors of the early 20th century, Farrer travelled through China and Burma, introducing many new species.
US$50. bookID # 479
FERGUSSON, W. N.; Adventure Sport and Travel on the Tibetan Steppes. London, Constable and Company, 1911, First edition, 8vo [24.5 x 17 cm]; xvi, 343 pp, frontis (portrait), numerous illus including many full-page from the author and J. W. Brooke, 2 fldg colored maps, index, orig green pictorial cloth with gilt spine title lettering, short tear at spine foot, edges a little worn, front internal hinge cracked but firm, signature, very good, interior clean.
Yakushi F 29. Cordier 4396. Marshall 2059. The author based the work on the diaries and journal of John Weston Brooke, and provides a detailed narrative of Brooke's journeys through western China and Tibet in 1906-1908, including a meeting with the Dali Lama, the first since being displaced by his avoidance of Younghusband's incursion in Lhasa. On Brooke's second journey he was accompanied by C.H. Meares, who later joined Scott's expedition to the South Pole. Brooke was murdered by Lolo tribesmen in 1908. An important description of the area and its peoples with excellent illustrations.
US$380. bookID # 8532
FLEMING, George; Travels on Horseback in Mantchu Tartary: Being a Summer's ride Beyond the Great Wall of China. London, Hurst and Blackett, 1863, First edition, 8vo [26 x 17 cm]; xvi, 579, [viii, ads] pp, color lithographed (chromolithograph) frontis, numerous engraved illus, folding partly colored map, index, orig blue pictorial gilt cloth, picture of two men with horses, gilt title lettering on spine and front cover, cover and some leaves with light stains, mostly marginal, spine ends worn, bookplate of Marquis L. Wood, Shanghai, good sound copy.
Cordier 2747. The author and a companion traveled on horseback between Tien-Tsin and Moukden in 1861 and provide an interesting narrative of the Chinese military, the punishment of prisoners, the mutilated feet of women, customs, superstitions, the spy system, the Great Wall of China, veterinarians, topography, the people, etc.
US$1100. bookID # 10006
FORTUNE, Robert; A Journey to the Tea Countries of China; Sung-lo and the Bohea Hills; with a Short Notice of the East India Company's Tea Plantations in the Himalaya Mountains. London, John Murray, 1852, First edition, 8vo [23 x 15 cm]; xvii, 398, 32 [publisher's ads, dated April 1852] pp, 17 illustrations including tinted frontis, 2 plates (one tinted), map, extra engraved title-page in red and black, engraved illus in text, orig pictorial gilt cloth, gilt vignettes and lettering on spine, rebacked in cloth preserving the orig spine and boards, edges rubbed, lightly foxed, mainly on first few leaves, repair to title and other leaf, very good sound copy.
Cordier Sinica p. 2116. Abbey Travel, 529. Mueller p. 81. Fortune, one of the greatest 19th century plant hunters, describes his journey to unknown parts of China to seek tea plants for use by the British in the Himalayas. The tea growing methods of the Chinese were secret so he had to disguise himself as a Chinese native, and by so doing, learnt their secret ways. He sent 20,000 tea plants which resulted in the British tea industry in India. He also discovered numerous trees and shrubs, some of which are now named after him. A classic travel work in the first edition.
US$800. bookID # 9720
FORTUNE, Robert; A Journey to the Tea Countries of China; Sung-lo and the Bohea Hills; with a Short Notice of the East India Company's Tea Plantations in the Himalaya Mountains. London, John Murray, 1852, First edition, first issue, 8vo [23 x 15 cm]; xvii, 398, 32 [publisher's ads, dated November 1851] pp, 17 illustrations including tinted frontis, 2 plates (one tinted), map, extra engraved title-page in red and black, engraved illus in text, orig pictorial gilt cloth, gilt vignettes and lettering on spine, expertly rebacked in cloth preserving the orig spine and boards, edges rubbed, lightly foxed, mainly on first few leaves, bookplate & name on endpaper, very good sound copy.
Cordier Sinica p. 2116. Abbey Travel, 529. Mueller p. 81. Fortune, one of the greatest 19th century plant hunters, describes his journey to unknown parts of China to seek tea plants for use by the British in the Himalayas. The tea growing methods of the Chinese were secret so he had to disguise himself as a Chinese native, and by so doing, learnt their secret ways. He sent 20,000 tea plants which resulted in the British tea industry in India. He also discovered numerous trees and shrubs, some of which are now named after him. A classic travel work in the first edition. This is the first issue with the earliest date of the ads.
US$740. bookID # 11073
FORTUNE, Robert; Three Years' Wandering in the Northern Provinces of China, A Visit to the Tea, Silk, and Cotton Countries, with an account of the Agriculture and Horticulture of the Chinese, New Plants, etc. London, John Murray, 1847, First edition, 8vo [23 x 15 cm]; xv, 406, [i], [16 page publisher's catalogue] pp, tinted lithographed frontis, extra lithographed title page with vignette of Chinese wedding, 15 other illustrations including map and lithographed plates, orig pictorial gilt stamped cloth, gilt lettering on spine, spine ends with one inch and half inch chips at ends, spine bit faded and repaired, internally very good.
Fortune was the first plant collector to travel in China after the conclusion of the Opium War, as a botanical collector for the Horticultural Society of London starting in 1843. Travel was not allowed for more than 30 miles past Shanghai, but undaunted "he set off by boat from Shanghai, in Chinese costume complete with shaved head and pigtail" (see Coats p. 101-110 for details), and was the first westerner to reach Soochow and many other parts of China, collecting large numbers of plants and seeds. The book contains two chapters on the cultivation and manufacture of tea with suggestions on the possibilities of developing a tea industry in India. If fact, this book and his later books and plant collecting (as an employee of the East India Company) lead to the Indian tea industry. As a result of the travels described here he found numerous new plants including anemones, chrysanthemums, jasmine, forsythia, honeysuckle, etc. This is his first book and his scarcest. Cordier p. 2115. Massachusetts Horticultural Society Catalogue p. 102.
US$550. bookID # 4859
FORTUNE, Robert; Three Year's Wanderings in the Northern Provinces of China, a Visit to the Tea, Silk and Cotton Countries with an Account of the Agriculture and Horticulture of the Chinese, New Plants, etc. London, Mildmay Books [John Murray], [1987], reprinted from the 1847 first edition, 8vo [21.5 x 14 cm]; xvi, 406, [i] pp, tinted frontis, extra title page with vignette of Chinese wedding, 15 other illustrations including map and plates, orig pictorial wraps, cover slightly rubbed at edge, but clean and near fine.
Fortune was the first plant collector to travel in China after the conclusion of the Opium War, as a botanical collector for the Horticultural Society of London starting in 1843. Travel was not allowed for more than 30 miles past Shanghai, but undaunted "he set off by boat from Shanghai, in Chinese costume complete with shaved head and pigtail" (see Coats p. 101-110 for details), and was the first westerner to reach Soochow and many other parts of China, collecting large numbers of plants and seeds. The book contains two chapters on the cultivation and manufacture of tea with suggestions on the possibilities of developing a tea industry in India, and contained new knowledge about the production and processing of tea. In fact, this book and his later books and plant collecting (as an employee of the East India Company) lead to the Indian tea industry. As a result of the travels described here he found numerous new plants including anemones, chrysanthemums, jasmine, forsythia, honeysuckle, etc. Besides plants and horticulture, the author also describes the people and geography. This was his first book. Cordier p. 2115. Massachusetts Horticultural Society Catalogue p. 102. This is a nice production reprinting the first edition, which is very scarce.
US$65. bookID # 10034
FORTUNE, Robert; Three Year's Wanderings in the Northern Provinces of China, a Visit to the Tea, Silk and Cotton Countries with an Account of the Agriculture and Horticulture of the Chinese, New Plants, etc. London, John Murray, 1847, Second edition, 8vo [22 x 14 cm]; xiv, [i], 406, [i], 16 [publisher's catalog] pp, lithographed frontis, extra lithographed title page with vignette of Chinese wedding, 17 illustrations including map and lithographed plates, orig blind-stamped brown cloth, pictorial gilt, gilt spine title lettering, rebacked preserving orig spine and boards, light cover stain, edgewear, minor foxing on few leaves, new endpapers, very good sound copy.
Fortune was the first plant collector to travel in China after the conclusion of the Opium War, as a botanical collector for the Horticultural Society of London starting in 1843. Travel was not allowed for more than 30 miles past Shanghai, but undaunted "he set off by boat from Shanghai, in Chinese costume complete with shaved head and pigtail" (see Coats p. 101-110 for details), and was the first westerner to reach Soochow and many other parts of China, collecting large numbers of plants and seeds. The book contains two chapters on the cultivation and manufacture of tea with suggestions on the possibilities of developing a tea industry in India. In fact, this book and his later books and plant collecting (as an employee of the East India Company) lead to the Indian tea industry. As a result of the travels described here he found numerous new plants including anemones, chrysanthemums, jasmine, forsythia, honeysuckle, etc. Besides plants and horticulture, the author also describes the people and geography. This is his first book and one of the scarcest. Cordier p. 2115. Massachusetts Horticultural Society Catalogue p. 102.
US$650. bookID # 10955
FORTUNE, Robert; Three Year's Wanderings in the Northern Provinces of China, a Visit to the Tea, Silk and Cotton Countries with an Account of the Agriculture and Horticulture of the Chinese, New Plants, etc. London, John Murray [Time-Life Books], 1847 [1986], reprinted from the 1847 first edition, 8vo [22 x 14.5 cm]; xv, 406, [i], [16 page John Murray's catalogue] pp, tinted frontis, extra title page with vignette of Chinese wedding, 15 other illustrations including map and plates, orig simulated brown leather, decorated in gilt and red, gilt lettering, a. e. g., marbled endpapers, original ribbon bookmark, very fine and clean, with the original publisher's prospectus containing a good historical introduction and a loose bookplate.
Fortune was the first plant collector to travel in China after the conclusion of the Opium War, as a botanical collector for the Horticultural Society of London starting in 1843. Travel was not allowed for more than 30 miles past Shanghai, but undaunted "he set off by boat from Shanghai, in Chinese costume complete with shaved head and pigtail" (see Coats p. 101-110 for details), and was the first westerner to reach Soochow and many other parts of China, collecting large numbers of plants and seeds. The book contains two chapters on the cultivation and manufacture of tea with suggestions on the possibilities of developing a tea industry in India, and contains new knowledge about the production and processing of tea. In fact, this book and his later books and plant collecting (as an employee of the East India Company) lead to the Indian tea industry. As a result of the travels described here he found numerous new plants including anemones, chrysanthemums, jasmine, forsythia, honeysuckle, etc. Besides plants and horticulture, the author also describes the people and geography. This was his first book. Cordier p. 2115. Massachusetts Horticultural Society Catalogue p. 102. This is a fine production reprinting the scarce first edition, with all the plates and text. A lavishly illustrated and historically accurate photographic reproduction of the original.
US$110. bookID # 11002
FORTUNE, Robert; Three Year's Wanderings in the Northern Provinces of China, a Visit to the Tea, Silk and Cotton Countries with an Account of the Agriculture and Horticulture of the Chinese, New Plants, etc. London, John Murray [Time-Life Books], 1847 [1986], reprinted from the 1847 first edition, 8vo [22 x 14.5 cm]; xv, 406, [i], [16 page John Murray's catalogue] pp, tinted frontis, extra title page with vignette of Chinese wedding, 15 other illustrations including map and plates, orig simulated brown leather, decorated in gilt and red, gilt lettering, a. e. g., marbled endpapers, original ribbon bookmark, very fine and clean, with the original publisher's prospectus containing a good historical introduction and a loose bookplate.
Fortune was the first plant collector to travel in China after the conclusion of the Opium War, as a botanical collector for the Horticultural Society of London starting in 1843. Travel was not allowed for more than 30 miles past Shanghai, but undaunted "he set off by boat from Shanghai, in Chinese costume complete with shaved head and pigtail" (see Coats p. 101-110 for details), and was the first westerner to reach Soochow and many other parts of China, collecting large numbers of plants and seeds. The book contains two chapters on the cultivation and manufacture of tea with suggestions on the possibilities of developing a tea industry in India, and contains new knowledge about the production and processing of tea. If fact, this book and his later books and plant collecting (as an employee of the East India Company) lead to the Indian tea industry. As a result of the travels described here he found numerous new plants including anemones, chrysanthemums, jasmine, forsythia, honeysuckle, etc. Besides plants and horticulture, the author also describes the people and geography. This was his first book. Cordier p. 2115. Massachusetts Horticultural Society Catalogue p. 102. This is a fine production reprinting the scarce first edition, with all the plates and text. A lavishly illustrated and historically accurate photographic reproduction of the original.
US$100. bookID # 9036
FORTUNE, Robert; Yedo and Peking; A Narrative of a Journey to the Capitals of Japan and China, with Notices of the Natural Productions, Agriculture, Horticulture and Trade of those Countries and Other Things Met with By the Way. London, John Murray, 1863, First edition, 8vo [23 x 15 cm]; xv, 395 pp, folding panorama frontis, 8 plates including street-plan of Yedo, folding map of Japan and part of China, other engraved illus, index, contemporary full tree calf gilt title lettering on leather spine label, rubbed, light wear, marbled endpapers, very good copy.
The author, the most important plant hunter of the time, narrates his journey to Japan in 1860, at a time when few foreigners had visited, describing the countryside, the people, nature, customs, tea-house, villages, towns, cities, gardens, plants. He then describes his subsequent travels in China, having visited several times previously, when he found numerous plants, especially tea, which he sent back to the west, the tea being the beginning of the tea industry in India. Cordier Sinica 21116. Cordier Japonica 566. Staflen 1832. Fortune was the first plant collector to travel in China after the conclusion of the Opium War, as a botanical collector for the Horticultural Society of London starting in 1843.
US$1100. bookID # 11020
FRANCK, Harry A.; Wanderings in Northern China. New York & London, The Century Co, [1923], First Edition, 8vo [23 x 16 cm]; xx, 502 pp, frontis, 171 illus from photos on 89 plates, color folding map of China and Japan showing author's route, orig pictorial cloth, spine ends rubbed, signature on endpaper, very light foxing on few leaves, else a very good sound copy.
Based on two years travels in Korea, Manchuria and northern China, the author of numerous travel books gives an accurate and well-illustrated description of peoples, customs, conditions, and life in these countries.
US$36. bookID # 9343
GIBB, H. A. R., C. F. Beckingham, A. D. H. Bivar; The Travels of Ibn Battuta, A. D. 1325 - 1354. Cambridge, London, The Hakluyt Society, 1958-2000, First Editions, 8vo [22 x 14 cm]; 5 volumes (volumes I, II, III, IV, V), a complete set with all plates, maps, some folding, frontispieces, bibliog, volume V has the index, orig cloth, gilt vignette, gilt spine title lettering, very slight fading of cover of first two volumes, a fine and clean set, unmarked, volumes 4 & 5 in fine dust jackets, volume II with the dj flap on endpaper.
Ibn Battuta journeyed in the 14th century and is one of the most famous travellers of the middle ages. His travels include northwest Africa, Egypt, Syria, Mecca, Persia, Iraq, Arabia, east Africa, Persian Gulf, Asia Minor, south Russia, Turkestan, Khurasan, Sind, India, China, etc. The publication took over 40 years, which is longer than the 30 years of Ibn Battuta's travels. A complete set, each volume being a first edition.
US$550. bookID # 12492
GIBBS, W. M.; Spices and How to Know Them. Buffalo, np, 1909, First Edition, large 8vo [25 x 17 cm]; 179 pp, frontis, many color plates, bw plates, illus, maps including folding and color, orig cloth, gilt lettering, fine, clean and bright copy.
A very thorough work on spices and herbs, covering all aspects, including their botany, history, how to detect adulteration, separate chapters on black pepper, white pepper, long pepper, cayenne, pimento or allspice, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, ginger, mace, mustard and various herbs. The maps show prime spice producing parts of the world, Jamaica, Ceylon, India, China, etc. A well-illustrated and attractively produced book.
US$50. bookID # 2550
GILES, Herbert A.; Chinese Poetry in English Verse. London, Shanghai, Bernard Quaritch; Kelly & Walsh, 1898, First edition, 8vo [23.5 x 15 cm]; [iv], 212, [i, list of author's books]; index in English and Chinese, text is in English, notes, title printed in red and black, contemporary half red morocco, gilt ruled, elaborate gilt design and title lettering on spine, top edge gilted, old inscription on endpaper, edges bit rubbed, scuffed, but a very good+ copy in attractive cover, gilt is bright.
Poems from famous Chinese poets from last few thousand years.
US$80. bookID # 11310
GILL, Capt. William, introduction by Col. Henry Yule; River of Golden Sand; The Narrative of a Journey Through China and Eastern Tibet to Burmah. London, John Murray, 1880, First edition, 8vo [22 x 14.5 cm]; 2 volumes, 420; 453 pp, frontis in each volume, each volume with engraved vignette on title, half title in volume II, 10 maps and charts (folding), index, contemporary half red morocco, marbled boards, lightly rubbed, gilt spine title lettering, upper portion of margin of titles removed with loss of 'the', repair to map, else very good with only slight foxing on a few leaves.
Yakushi G57. Marshall 1343. The second edition was abridged from this first edition and had only two maps. The author was awarded the Royal Geographical Society gold medal for this journey and the mapping made. He was the first European to explore large parts of western China and Tibet, the book describes his travels in detail from Shanghai, Hong Kong up the Yangtze, through China and Tibet to Burma, the peoples, opium smoking, conditions, nature, cities, etc. The introduction by Yule adds a good historical perspective.
US$900. bookID # 10882
GRAHAM, Andrew, with a foreword by Sir Hubert Graves; Interval in Indo-China. London, Macmillan & Co., 1956, First edition, 8vo [20 x 13.5 cm]; xv, 164 pp, frontis and plates from photos, foldout map at end, orig cloth, gilt spine title lettering, dj (slightly rubbed, not price clipped), clean, unmarked, fine copy in near fine dj.
The author, while on leave with the French Foreign Legion, traveled widely in southeastern Asia, including Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos (then Annam, Cochin China, Tonkin, Red River Delta, Siam), over a two year period and provides good description of the peoples, palaces, monuments, conditions, ceremonies, temples, culture, etc.
US$20. bookID # 11528
HALL, Captain Basil; Account of a Voyage of Discovery to the West Coast of Corea and the Great Loo-Choo Island; with an Appendix containing Charts and Various Hydrographical and Scientific Notices. London, John Murray, 1818, First edition of Hall's most important book, 4to [27 x 22 cm]; xvi, 222, cxxx, [lxxii, vocabulary] pp, 9 fine engraved plates, of which 8 are hand colored, 5 maps and plans including several folding, plate of Wallaston's Dip Sector, tables, [complete with all 15 plates, maps, charts], contemporary boards with new leather spine, black leather labels, corners worn, light foxing, one plate has tear in margin and a crease, very good copy with good impressions of plates.
There is a vocabulary of the Loo-Choo language by H. J. Clifford at the end of the book. The fine plates were drawn by William Havell, one of the best early painters in water-color, and engraved by Robert Havell based on sketches by the author and C. W. Browne. They include views of Sulphur Island, Napakiang, various officials, costume, one of artifacts, etc. Hill I, 134: "The expedition took Lord Amherst's embassy to China and explored the relatively little-known East China Sea and the Yellow Sea. Visits were made to Korea and the Ryuku Archipelago. . . [first] detailed information was obtained about the Ryukyus." Cordier 3009. Prideaux 251. Tooley 241. Abbey Travel 558 (which reproduces the frontis plate). Korea had been only sketchily explored by Europeans until this expedition. The American edition was abridged with only two maps and no plates. Hall's first and most important book.
US$1800. bookID # 5526
HART, Albert Bushnell; The Obvious Orient. New York and London, D. Appleton and Company, 1911, First edition, 12mo [20 x 13 cm]; x, 369, [iv, ads] pp, index, orig green cloth lightly faded but gilt lettering unworn, hinges repaired, bookplate of D. B. Gibson, good, clean throughout.
The author, a Harvard University professor of government, travelled in Japan, China, Philippines, Ceylon and provides interesting perspective on places visited, especially the people, conditions and politics.
US$20. bookID # 6173
HENDERSON, Daniel; Yankee Ships in China Seas; Adventures of Pioneer Americans in the Troubled Far East. New York, Hastings House, [1946], First edition, small 8vo [21 x 14 cm]; xiv, 374 pp, bibliog, index, map endpapers, orig cloth, dj (closed tear), fine.
The illustrations are from early sources, including of ships, ports, toddy jug, porcelain, dinner service, etc.
US$14. bookID # 4815
HUGHES, Therle; Cottage Antiques. New York, Frederick A. Praeger, [1967], First British edition, 8vo [23 x 15 cm]; 219 pp, colored frontis, 48 plates, including many from early sources, index, orig red cloth, gilt spine title lettering, fine, clean and unmarked condition.
Covering all aspects including chairs, settles, dressers, chests, cupboards, tables, clocks, spinning wheels, china, figures, copper, willow pattern, staffordshire, mocha, brass, copper, Georgian brass, ornamental brass, cottage lighting, pewter, coverlets, quilts, prints, English maps, etc.
US$5. bookID # 12127
HULTON, Paul and Lawrence Smith; Flowers in Art from East and West. London, British Museum Publications, [1979], First edition, 4to [28 x 22 cm]; x, 150 pp, frontis, 133 illus, including some in color on plates, other full-page, bibliog, index, orig cloth, gilt spine title lettering, dj (not price clipped), fine and clean condition.
Illustrations of all types of floral art except oil paintings, the book describes the three motives that inspired artists, and covers both Europe as well as Islam, China, Japan, Persia, India, and includes a good section on printing techniques.
US$12. bookID # 12120
HUNTINGTON, Ellsworth; West of the Pacific. New York, London, Charles Scribner's Sons, 1925, First Edition, 8vo; xvii, 453 pp, frontis, plates, orig cloth, very good.
Travels of a geographer through China, Java, East Indies, Australia.
US$25. bookID # 918
HYAMS, Edward; A History of Gardens and Gardening. London, J. M. Dent & Sons, [1971], First edition, 4to [28.5 x 23 cm]; ix, 345 pp, numerous illus in color and black & white, bibliog, index, orig pictorial gilt cloth, gilt spine title lettering, dj (bit rubbed at edge, price clipped), else fine.
One of the better overviews of garden history covering all aspects, especially from a garden art point of view. Includes the development of gardens in early times, China, Greece, Japan, Islam, Middle Ages, Pre-Columbian Americas, France, England, English influence abroad, very well illustrated. The author is one of England's most respected and knowledgeable gardening writers.
US$30. bookID # 9422
HYAMS, Edward; A History of Gardens and Gardening. New York, Praeger Publishers, [1971], First American Edition, 4to [28.5 x 23 cm]; ix, 345 pp, numerous illus in color and bw, bibliog, orig pict gilt cloth, dj (small crease), else fine.
One of the better overviews of garden history covering all aspects, especially from a garden art point of view. Includes the development of gardens in early times, China, Greece, Japan, Islam, Middle Ages, Pre-Columbian Americas, France, England, English influence abroad, very well illustrated.
US$15. bookID # 2793
IYER, Pico; Video Night in Kathmandu and Other Reports from the Not-so-far-East. New York, Alfred A. Knopf, 1988, First edition, 8vo [22 x 15 cm]; [vi], 376, [i] pp, orig cloth-backed pictorial boards with gilt and bronze picture and title lettering, dj (slightly rubbed at edge, price clipped), near fine.
This popular travel writer describes his experiences in Bali, Tibet, Nepal, China, Philippines, Burma, Hong Kong, India, Thailand and Japan, both interesting and entertaining.
US$9. bookID # 8886
JAMES, H. E. M.; The Long White Mountain or a Journey in Manchuria with Some Account of the History, People, Administration and Religion of that Country. London, Longmans, Green and Co., 1888, First edition, 8vo [23 x 16 cm]; xxiv, 502 pp, color lithograph (chromolithograph) frontis after sketch by Younghusband, 9 other plates, other illus in text, folding hand-colored map, table, index, recent morocco-backed marbled boards, light foxing, very good solid copy.
Cordier Sinica 2748. Taylor 109. A narrative of the author's extensive travels in the area with detailed descriptions of the peoples including the smaller tribes, their customs, daily life, religion, productions, etc. One of the appendices is on opium and its use, another on official corruption. He describes the journeys of earlier explorers including De La Bruniere and Venault.
US$450. bookID # 7478
KING, F. H.; Farmers of Forty Centuries; or Permanent Agriculture in China, Korea and Japan. Emmaus, Organic Gardening Press, nd [c1940s], , 8vo [21 x 14 cm]; 379 pp, 209 illustrations mostly from photos, maps in text, tables, index, orig cloth, spine title lettering, few library marks, but overall quite clean, dj (chipped, spine faded), very good in good dj.
This book was one of the most influential in the development of modern organic gardening and shows the use of manure and compost in gardens and farming and the conservation of natural resources. The author was formerly professor at the University of Wisconsin. Preface by L. H. Bailey, noted horticulturist and writer.
US$10. bookID # 11614
KINGDON WARD, Capt. F. (Frank); The Romance of Plant Hunting. London, Edward Arnold, 1924, First edition, 8vo [22.5 x15 cm]; xi, 275, 12 [ads] pp, frontis, plates from photos, folding map, general index, plant index, orig cloth with gilt vignette and lettering on front cover & spine, lightly rubbed at spine ends, a clean very good+ copy with an extra 3-page appendix tipped in at end (in reduced format about 6 x 4 inches, possibly from a later edition).
The author, perhaps the most famous plant hunter of the twentieth century, describes his travels in Yunnan, Burma, China, Tibet searching for new plants but also describing the countryside and peoples and gives his own feelings and philosophy of plant collecting, travel, nature, etc. There was a later reprint but in reduced format compared to this first edition.
US$200. bookID # 9721
KINGDON WARD, Captain Frank; The Mystery Rivers of Tibet; A Description of the little-known Land Where Asia's Mightiest Rivers Gallop in Harness Through the Narrow Gateway of Tibet, Its Peoples, Fauna, & Flora. Philadelphia, J. B. Lippincott Company, 1923, First US edition, 8vo [22 x 14 cm]; 316, [iv, ads] pp, illus from photos, 4 maps including large fldg map at end, index, orig pictorial cloth, spine title lettering, tiny tear at spine end, but a fine and clean copy, covers bright and unworn pristine and fresh.
One of the greatest explorers of the early part of this century and, perhaps, the most famous plant hunter of all times, Kingdon Ward travelled extensively in Burma, China and Tibet. He introduced numerous plants to western gardens including the Tibetan poppy and rhododendrons. This is a detailed description of the area with much on the geography, the people, and the plants he found, including over 200 new species. It is one of his scarcest books. Coats (The Plant Hunters): 'His most important and interesting journey.' Schweinfurth IV. Marshall 2070. Yakushi K191.
US$1000. bookID # 11286
KINGDON WARD, F. [Frank]; The Romance of Gardening. London, Jonathan Cape, [1935], First edition, 8vo [20.5 x 14.5 cm]; 271 pp, frontis, plates from photos, appendices, orig green cloth, gilt spine title lettering, some light foxing in the outer edge of text block, a bright and clean copy, fine condition.
Perhaps the most famous plant hunter of the twentieth century, who introduced many plants he found in China, Tibet, Assam, Burma including the blue poppy, provides a unique perspective on gardening. The topics include the lure of flowers, the perverseness of plants, the geography of the garden, alpines, introduced foreign plants, where our plants come from, plant hunting days, from China to Chelsea, the owner garden, etc. The appendices include a list of the main plants the author introduced and plants that have been discovered and which he wishes were introduced for the garden.
US$55. bookID # 10398
KINGDON-WARD, Frank; Pilgrimage for Plants. London, George G. Harrap & Co., [1960], First edition, 8vo [21.5 x 14.5 cm]; 191 pp, frontis (portrait), plates from photos, bibliog, index, endpaper maps, orig green cloth, title lettering on spine, dj (closed tear on rear panel, price clipped, light wear), light abrasion on title where label was removed, else clean, sound, neart fine in good+ dj.
Kingdon-Ward, the last of the great plant hunters, describes his life and adventures, in this, the last of his books. He made 23 expeditions for plants, mainly in Assam, Burma, China and Tibet, over a forty year period, and is described in this book. Many species of plants have been named after him. William T. Stearn of the British Museum wrote a useful bibliographical introduction, including a year by year account of Kingdon-Ward's explorations, with references to the resulting publications. Stearn also compiled a list of all known publications of him, including periodicals and books. Yakushi K204. Schweinfurth 25. Marshall 27871.
US$50. bookID # 11058
KINGDON-WARD, Frank; Pilgrimage for Plants. London, George G. Harrap & Co., [1960], First edition (true first), 8vo [21.5 x 14.5 cm]; 191 pp, frontis (portrait), plates from photos, bibliog, index, endpaper maps, orig green cloth, title lettering on spine, dj (closed tear on rear panel), clean, sound, fine in very good dj.
Kingdon-Ward, the last of the great plant hunters, describes his life and adventures, in this, the last of his books. He made 23 expeditions for plants, mainly in Assam, Burma, China and Tibet, over a forty year period, and is described in this book. Many species of plants have been named after him. William T. Stearn of the British Museum wrote a useful bibliographical introduction, including a year by year account of Kingdon-Ward's explorations, with references to the resulting publications. Stearn also compiled a list of all known publications of him, including periodicals and books. Yakushi K204. Schweinfurth 25. Marshall 27871.
US$120. bookID # 10361
KNOX, Thomas W.; Overland Through Asia; Pictures of Siberian, Chinese & Tartar Life; Travels & Adventures in Kamchatka, Siberia, China, Mongolia, Chinese Tartary & European Russia, with Full Accounts of the Siberian Exiles, their Treatment, Condition & Mode of Life. Hartford, American Publishing Company, 1870, First edition, 8vo [22.5 x 15 cm]; xviii, [19] - 608 pp, 15 plates including frontis (portrait), total of 193 illus (complete), from drwgs, double page map with route shown, orig pictorial gilt cloth, gilt spine title lettering and gilt vignette, spine worn and amateurishly repaired, internal hinges repaired, a little loose, interior clean and good.
Nerhood 301: "Member of US surveying expedition planning rout for future line journeys from Kamchatka across Siberia to St. Petersburg revealing the severe treatment accorded the exiles'. Smith K43: 'He traveled 3,600 miles in sledges and 1,400 miles in wagons'. A very well-illustrated account.
US$65. bookID # 10653
LACOMBE, Sieur Jean de; A Compendium of the East being an Account of Voyages to the Grand Indies made by the Sieur Jean De Lacombe, of Quercy, Formerly Captain at Arms in the Service of the Company of the Indies of Holland. London, The Golden Cockerel Press, 1937, First edition, limited to 300 copies on hand-made paper, sm folio; 209, [i], double page plates, double page facsimile from orig manuscript, ep maps from contemp Mercator atlas, bibliog, glossary of place names, index, orig 1/4 cloth and cloth decorated bds, slight wear at ends of spine but a fine clean copy.
This is the first publication, from the Bordeaux Manuscript of 1681 with an English translation from the old French by Stephanie & Denis Clark, with an introduction and notes by Ashley Gibson. Jean de Lacombe traveled through Ceylon, Java, Sumatra, Ternat, Nambonne, Gounong Apy, Siam, Moluccas, China, etc, in the seventeenth century. The plates are from contemporary engravings of some of the principle places visited reproduced from Schultzen's Ost-indische Reyse, Amsterdam, 1676. A lovely production of this early and interesting travel narrative based on the manuscript discovered in 1937 with a useful introduction and bibliography.
US$450. bookID # 1612
LAMARTINE, Alphonse de; J. L. Stephens; Howard Malcom; Travels in the East, a Journey in the Holy Land [with] Incidents of Travel in Greece, Turkey, Russia & Poland by Stephens [with] Travel in Egypt, Arabia Petraea & the Holy Land [with] Travels in the Burman Empire [with] In Hindustan and China by Malcom. Edinburgh, William and Robert Chambers, 1839-40, , large 8vo [25 x 17 cm]; 5 volumes bound in one, 230; 114; 129; 82; 94 pp, frontis map for Travels Burman Empire, other illus, text in double columns, red cloth, gilt title lettering on leather spine label, gilt rules on spine, marbled edges, minor foxing on few leaves, very good sound copy.
Five works bound in one volume, Malcom's two books Travels in the Burman Empire and his Travels In Hindustan and China were both published in 1840, the other three in 1839. Stephens went on to explore the Mayan ruins of Yucatan and Central America and became famous doing so, although his two earlier works included here are valuable travel accounts. See Blackmer 943 and Tobler 153 for the Lamartine, whose work here includes a memoir of the author and additional notes.
US$160. bookID # 11573
LANCASTER, Roy; Travels in China; A Plantsman's Paradise. [Woodbridge, Suffolk], Antique Collector's Club, [1989], First edition, 4to [28 x 22 cm]; 516, [i, ad] pp, col frontis, over 400 color & 250 bw illus, maps, bibliog, index of plants, index of people, index of locations, index of gardens, glossary, colored endpaper maps, orig cloth, gilt title lettering on spine and cover, dj, fine, clean and unmarked.
After a useful introduction to plant hunting in China, with brief biographies of all the main collectors, the author describes his many travels in search of plants, which includes adventure as well as botany. China is one of the richest areas of the world for different plant species. The author is an acclaimed garden writer and plant collector. A beautifully illustrated work. This copy contains a four-page handwritten manuscript entitled 'New Treats from China by Roy Lancaster' dated March 8/90, which describes in some detail historical plant hunting in China and the plants found that are currently available in nurseries.
US$75. bookID # 12812
LATTIMORE, Owen; The Desert Road to Turkestan. Boston, Little, Brown, and Company, 1929, First American edition, 8vo [23 x 15 cm]; xv, 373 pp, frontis, numerous other illus from photos, endpaper maps with route in red, appendix on details of route, index, orig cloth, spine lightly rubbed but with the title lettering still clear, spine ends lightly frayed, pencil inscription, very good clean copy.
An account of author's 1926 and 1927 travels on a 1,600 mile route, the Jao Lu, following the caravan trails through Mongolia from China to Chinese Turkestan. Bibliog. Mongolica 2282.
US$125. bookID # 10720
LATTIMORE, Owen; The Desert Road to Turkestan. Boston, Little, Brown, and Company, 1929, First American edition, 8vo [23 x 15 cm]; xv, 373 pp, frontis, numerous other illus from photos, endpaper maps with route in red, appendix on details of route, index, orig cloth, spine lightly sunned but with the title lettering still clear, spine lightly worn, very good clean and unmarked copy.
An account of author's 1926 and 1927 travels on a 1,600 mile route, the Jao Lu, following the caravan trails through Mongolia from China to Chinese Turkestan. Bibliog. Mongolica 2282.
US$130. bookID # 9512
LEVIEN, Michael (edited and with introduction); The Cree Journals; The Voyages of Edward H. Cree, Surgeon R. N., as Related in His Private Journals, 1837-1856. Toronto, Nelson, [1981], First edition, Canadian issue, published simultaneously with first British edition, 4to [25 x 20 cm]; 276 pp, frontis (port), profusion of illus, mainly in color, many full-page, several fldg color panoramas, incl one 4-pager of Brunei, color maps, endpaper maps, orig cloth, spine title lettering, dj, fine, clean and unmarked.
A fascinating travel account to many parts, especially Asia, Far East, China Sea, Hong Kong, etc, with excellent illustrations from period sources, beautifully illustrated.
US$5. bookID # 11757
LEVIEN, Michael (edited and with introduction); The Cree Journals; The Voyages of Edward H. Cree, Surgeon R. N., as Related in His Private Journals, 1837-1856. Toronto, Nelson, [1981], First Canadian Edition, sm 4to [25 x 20 cm]; 276 pp, frontis (port), profusion of illus, mainly in color, many full-page, several fldg color panoramas, incl one 4-pager of Brunei, color maps, endpaper maps, orig cloth, dj, fine, clean.
A fascinating travel account to many parts, especially Asia, Far East, China Sea, Hong Kong, etc, with excellent illustrations from period sources.
US$12. bookID # 9414
LITTLE, Archibald John; Through the Yang-tse Gorges; Trade and Travel in Western China. London, Sampson Low, Marston, Searle & Rivington, 1888, First edition, 8vo [22.5 x 14.5 cm]; xv, 368 pp, detailed folding map (backed on linen), contemporary half leather with gilt title lettering and decorations on spine, small library gilt stamp on cover else unmarked, marbled edges and endpapers, edges rubbed, light foxing on title page, but clean throughout, sound very good copy.
A narrative of the author's journey from Shanghai to Chung-king, the commercial center of Western China. Taylor 52. Cordier 2148.
US$250. bookID # 9237
LUARD, Lt.-Col. C. Accord, H. Hosten; Travels of Fray Sebastien Manrique 1629-1643; a translation of the Itinerario de las Missiones Orientales with introduction and notes by Lt-Col. C. Edkford Luard, assited by Father H. Hosten. Oxford, The Hakluyt Society, 1927, First edition, 8vo [22.5 x 15 cm]; 2 volumes, lxvi, 450; xii, 481 pp, 25 plates, maps and plans including frontis in each volume, plate of original Spanish edition of 1649, errata for volume I in volume II as issued, detailed bibliog, vernacular index, index, orig blind-stamped cloth, gilt vignette on each cover, gilt spine title lettering, clean, fine and bright copy, unmarked.
Volume I is on Arakan, volume II on China and India, etc, and is based on the narrative of Manrique's extensive travels through India, Burma, Afghanistan, Persia, Mesopotamia, Palestine, China, the Philippines, Java. The editor Luard, who died shortly after completing this work but just before its publication, provides a detailed description of the author and his work, the routes followed and geographical notes on the routes, which gives a good historical perspective. Cox i, 316. National Maritime Museum 426.
US$250. bookID # 10281
MACINTYRE, Major-General Donald; Hindu-Koh: Wanderings and Wild Sport on and Beyond the Himalayas. Edinburgh and London, William Blackwood and Sons, 1889, First edition, 8vo [23 x 15 cm]; xx, 464, 24 [publisher's catalogue] pp, fine color lithographed (chromolithograph) frontis, tissue guard, 8 plates from drwgs and photo with tissue guards (one with letterpress key), other engraved illus, complete, orig brown pictorial cloth with gilt mountain sheep in decorative border, gilt spine title lettering, spine ends chipped & worn, corner wear, internal hinges repaired, faint blindstamp on title margin & cancelled libr bookplate on verso, good, copy.
Yakushi, M23: 'The author traveled from Srina -gar to Leh, and then to Chang Chenmo, Lingzi-tang in 1871'. Interesting descriptions of the peoples, their customs, cities, religion, and of nature including tiger, bear, mahseer, pheasant, partridge, jurrow, leopard, hog, musk-deer, ibex, swamp-deer, elephant, surrow, stag, yak, ovis ammon, goa, burrell, hunting and fishing, Goorkas, etc. Extensive travels including Cashmere (Kashmir), Sind, Ladak, Tibet, parts of China, India, Himalaya foothills, etc, over a 30 year period beginning in 1853. The author was an officer with the Gurkhas and a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society. Later printings did not have the frontis in color.
US$280. bookID # 9541
MALCOM, Howard; Travels in South-Eastern Asia, Embracing Hindustan, Malaya, Siam and China with Notices of Numerous Missionary Stations and a Full Account of the Burman Empire, with Dissertation, Tables. Boston, Gould, Kendall and Lincoln, 1839, second edition, 8vo [22.5 x 15 cm]; 2 volumes in 1, 272; 321 pp, 5 steel engraved plates, including 2 frontis & 2 plates not listed in list of illustrations, fldg map, other illus including full-page, 3 pages of music, glossary, index, plates with tissue guards, contemporary half leather, spine gilt-ruled, spine with black leather label with gilt title lettering, edges rubbed, corner wear, rear board with some paper worn off, 'library' written on title page, lightly foxed else a clean unmarked very good copy.
Interesting account of social, economic, political conditions and a description of natural resources, opium trade, agriculture, religion, slavery, etc, based on the author's three years of travels to Burma, Chittagong, Arracan, Andaman, Rangoon, Pegu, Irrawady, Ava, Calcutta, Madras, East Bengal, Nicobar Islands, Tristan de Cuhan, Malacca, Singapore, Siam, Macoa and China. Smith M42. Cordier 419. Kaul 336: "Gives details of commerce, population, religion, palaces, physical features, festivals, food, dress, currency, hospitials, customs, revenue, army, language, literature, etc". Nice large margins
US$270. bookID # 6809
MALCOM, Howard; Travels in South-Eastern Asia, Embracing Hindustan, Malaya, Siam and China with Notices of Numerous Missionary Stations and a Full Account of the Burman Empire, with Dissertation, Tables. Boston, Gould, Kendall and Lincoln, 1839, First Edition, 12mo [20 x 12.5 cm]; 2 volumes, 271, [xiv, ads]; 321, [ii, ad] pp, 5 steel engraved plates, including 2 frontis & plate not listed in list of illustrations, fldg map, other illus including full-page, 3 pages of music, glossary, index, plates with tissues, orig blind-stamped cloth, gilt vignette & lettering on spine, covers decorated in blind design, spine ends worn, light foxing to some leaves, mainly marginal, very good set.
Interesting account of social, economic, political conditions and a description of natural resources, opium trade, agriculture, religion, slavery, etc, based on the author's three years of travels to Burma, East Bengal, Nicobar Islands, Tristan de Cuhan, Malacca, Singapore, Siam, Macoa and China. Smith M42. Cordier 419.
US$580. bookID # 6775
NELSON, Wilfred; Five Years at Panama; the Trans-Isthmian Canal. New York, Belford Company, [1889], First edition, 8vo [20 x 14 cm]; xiv, 287 pp, folding map frontis, 24 plates (complete) from drwgs, tables, orig blue decorated cloth, gilt spine title lettering, spine bit faded, spine end frayed, small stain on outer cover, interior very good and clean in good cover.
A nicely illustrated work showing old and new Panama City islands, towns, and good description of Colon, life and conditions, churches, ranchos, the gulf, whale fishing, seasons, statistics, commercial life, market, buildings, Chinatown, relation to Colombia, earthquake of 1882, Carthagena, forty-niners and California gold-rush, condition of the canal, etc. The author was a doctor and corresponding member of the Montreal Natural History Society. Welch 191.
US$130. bookID # 10280
OLIPHANT, Lawrence; Narrative of the Earl of Elgin's Mission to China and Japan in the Years 1857, '58, '59. New York, Harper & Brothers, 1860, First American edition, 8vo [24 x 16 cm]; xvi, [17]-645, [i], 2 [ads] pp, color lithograph (chromolithograph) frontis of winter scene in Japan from Japanese painting, 61 engraved illus of which 10 are full-page, tables, orig brown pictorial gilt cloth with gilt spine title lettering, spine ends chipped and repaired, cover lightly rubbed, bookplate removed from front endpaper, very good copy, clean interior.
Taylor 239. Cordier Sinica 2376. Cordier Japonica 1735. The diplomatic mission lasted over two years with the work describing the countries in detail, from the arrival in Hong Kong, up the Canton River to Pekin, Yedo, many other cities, side trips to Philippines, India, good descriptions of political and social conditions, productions, agriculture, military, geography, art, etc.
US$200. bookID # 8310
OSBORNE, Milton; River Raod to China; The Mekong River Expedition 1866-1873. New York, Liveright, [1975], First edition, 8vo [21.5 x 14 cm]; xxii, 249, [i] pp, illus from early sources including full-page, maps, bibliog, index, orig cloth, gilt spine title lettering, dj (price clipped), fine and clean, with a card from the publisher requesting a review.
A description of the first expedition up the Mekong river to its source, mapping 4,000 miles of previously unsurveyed territory from Saigon, Phnom Penh, through Vietnam, Cambodia, through south western China.
US$12. bookID # 10405
PAULLIN, Charles Oscar; American Voyages to the Orient 1690-1865; An Account of Merchant and Naval Activities in China, Japan, and the Various Pacific Islands. Annapolis, Maryland, United States Naval Institute, [1971, First edition thus, 8vo [22 x 15 cm]; ix, 182 pp, index, orig red & black cloth, gilt lettering, dj (slight rubbing), fine.
A collection of articles from the United States Naval Institute Proceedings of 1910-11, this is the first printing in book form.
US$32. bookID # 3252
PERZYNSKI, Friedrich; Von Chinas Gottern; Reisen in China. Munchen, Kurt Wolff Verlag, [1920], First edition, large 8vo [25 x 19.5 cm]; 263 pp, frontis, 80 plates, including double-page, a few in color, some with two illustrations, all from photos, mit 80 bildtafeln, orig pictorial gilt cloth with gilt spine title lettering on front cover and spine, decorative endpapers, dj (tear, edges chipped), fine in good dj.
Cordier Sinica 4860. A detailed study of Chinese religious sculpture based on the authors extensive travels in China. Text in the original German.
US$65. bookID # 7490
PIM, Bedford [Clapperton Trevelyan]; The Gate of the Pacific. London, Lovell Reeve & Co., 1863, First edition, 8vo [23 x 15 cm]; xiv, 432 pp, 9 plates of which 8 are colored lithographs with tissue guards, 7 maps including 2 folding and 1 colored, folding map with split at folds, orig pictorial cloth rebacked with new cloth spine preserving most of orig spine and gilt spine title lettering, cover wear, hinge cracked but firm, rear endpaper lacking, light blind-stamp to title page, interior good in fair cover.
Sabin 62872. Palau 225979. Welch 63. Pim had been an Arctic explorer and sailed with Belcher in search of Franklin and later commanded the Banterer off the coast of China and commanded the Gorgon off the coast of Central America. Hill 539: 'He originated and surveyed the Nicaraguan Canal route across the Isthmus, through the Mosquito Coast and Nicaragua.' Grieb 526: 'includes analysis of the various canal and railroad schemes in the isthmus and denunciation of the British government for failure to stand up to the Yankee bullies who seek to control the region. He demonstrates the importance of a canal to world commerce'. This work provides good descriptions of Nicaragua and Panama and some on Honduras based on his extensive travels. The excellent colored plates are views and scenes including San Juan del Sur, Gorgon villa, port of Realejo, railway bridge over Chagres, eastern suburb of Panama, etc.
US$210. bookID # 12728
PIM, Sheila; The Wood and The Trees; Augustine Henry, a Biography. London, Macdonald, [1966], First Edition, 8vo [22 x 15 cm];256 pp, illus from drwgs and photos, index, bibliog, Henry's publications, index, orig cloth, dj (slightly rubbed, small closed tear, price clipped), fine and clean in very good dj.
Henry went to China as a doctor, but after a study of botany, became an important plant collector where he received international recognition and opened the way for plant hunters such as Wilson and Forrest. He later jointly wrote the classic book, The Trees of Great Britain and Ireland and became involved with the Celtic renaissance. The appendices are a list of plants descovered by Henry and his publications.
US$22. bookID # 10890
POLO, Marco, edited by Manuel Komroff, illus by Nikolai Fyodorovitch Lapshin; The Travels of Marco Polo. New York, Limited Editions Club, 1934, edition limited to 1,500 copies, of which this is #516, signed by Lapshin, 8vo [21.5 x 16 cm]; 2 volumes, xli, 226; [iv], 227 - 477, [i] pp, numerous attractive illus by Lapshin, mostly in color, from his paintings and sketches, orig cloth with gilt lettering on cloth title labels on spine and front covers, small stains on endpapers, else near fine clean copy in original slipcase (worn at edge) with orig paper title label.
The work is divided into four sections including the journey from the Lesser Armenia to Shangtu, an account of the Great Kublai Khan and his court and cities, Japan and the islands of the Indian Sea, and the wars among the Tartar Princes. The extensive and detailed introduction by Komroff describes how the Polo manuscript came to be written and provides a good historical perspective.
US$140. bookID # 7654
PUMPELLY, Raphael; Across America and Asia; Notes of a Five Years' Journey Around the World and of a Residence in Arizona, Japan and China. New York, Leypoldt & Holt, 1870, Second edition, revised, 8vo [23 x 16 cm]; xvi, 454 pp, 25 illustrations including frontis (photo-lithograph of Buddha at Kamakura) and other full page plates, 4 of these being tinted facsimiles of Japanese woodcuts, 4 maps (3 fldg, 1 hand colored), fldg table of gold placers, orig pictorial gilt cloth, gilt lettering on spine, spine ends chipped & frayed, corners worn, title page and few other leaves foxed, good copy, clean.
Cordier p. 2134. Howes P647. Smith P101. The author was a Harvard University professor and a mining engineer in the employ of the Chinese and Japanese governments. The appearance of the article on Japanese art in this book, written by John La Farge, was the first in an American book. The initial part of the book is on the American west, particularly Arizona, but most of the book describes the geology, scenery, politics, people, etc of Japan, China as well as Central Asia and Siberia. With interesting illustrations. Later printings had inferior reproductions of the plates of Japanese woodcuts.
US$125. bookID # 6674
RAND, Christopher; Hongkong [Hong Kong]. New York, Alfred A. Knopf, 1952, First edition, 12mo [19.5 x 14 cm]; [x], 244, [ii] pp, orig boards, dj (price clipped, rubbed, short tear), very good, interior clean.
A picture of Hong Kong at the time with a chapter on Macao.
US$16. bookID # 9356
SCOTT, Peter, edited by Miranda Weston-Smith, photographs by Philippa Scott`; Travel Diaries of a Naturalist (3 volume set complete). London, Collins, 1983-1987, First editions, 8vo [25 x 17.5 cm]; 3 volumes, 287; 288; 223 pp, hundreds of illustrations, mostly in color, from photos and from Scott's paintings and drawings, maps including double-page, index in each volume, orig cloth, gilt spine title lettering, dust jackets (volume 2 & 3 not price clipped), a fine and clean set.
Son of the famous Scott of the Antarctic, esteemed naturalist and artist, who later became chairman of the World Wildlife Fund, the author had travelled extensively all over the world, keeping a journal in words and pictures. Beautifully illustrated with the author's sketches and much on each place visited, its natural history, birds, people, conditions, comments on conservations, etc. Volume I covers Australia, New Zealand, New Guinea, Africa, The Galapagos Islands, Antarctica and the Falkland Islands; volume II covers Hawaii, California, Iceland, Norway, Alaska, Florida, The Bahamas, Israel, Romania, Siberia, Spitzbergen, Greenland; and volume III is on Japan, Indonesia, Hong Kong, China, Mongolia, The Philippines, Malaysia, Australia, New Zealand. A superb set
US$100. bookID # 12635
SEVERIN, Tim; The China Voyage. London, Little, Brown and Company, [1994], First edition, 8vo [24 x 15 cm]; [x], 317 pp, color illus from photos, numerous drwgs, double page map, orig cloth, dj (short tear at edge), remainder mark at upper edge, pictorial endpaper, else fine and clean.
The author and his crew sailed a bamboo raft Hsu Fu from Hong Kong across the Pacific to test the theory that Asian raft sailors reached America some 2,000 years ago. They achieved a modern record for raft journeys in northern, hostile waters.
US$12. bookID # 7048
SEVERIN, Tim; The Sinbad Voyage. London, Hutchinson, [1982], First edition, 8vo [24 x 16 cm]; 239 pp, text illus from drwgs, numerous color illus from photos on plates, map endpapers showing route, orig cloth, dj (not clipped), small remainder mark on lower edge of text block, fine and clean.
The author travelled from Oman on the Arabian Sea in a ship similar to those used 1,000 years ago in an attempt to follow Sinbad's voyages from "A Thousand and One Nights". He travelled to India, Sri Lanka and across the Indian Ocean to Sumatra and the Malacca Straits to the China Seas to Canton in a boat that was a replica of an Arab sailing ship that was used a thousand years ago. It is one of the most remarkable sailing stories of the twentieth century. This copy includes a copy of the author's article in National Geographic (July 1982), 'In the Wake of Sinbad', a 40 page article with many colored photos, map, and is complementary to the book. Its included as part of the entire issue of the National Geographic for that month.
US$16. bookID # 8922
SHIPTON, Diana; The Antique Land. London, Hodder and Stoughton, [1950], First edition, 8vo [22 x 15 cm]; [x], 11-219 pp, 23 plates including frontis, from photos, text illus from drwgs by Jill Davis, endpaper maps, orig pictorial gilt cloth, gilt spine title lettering, lightly rubbed at edges, interior is clean and unmarked, very good+ in good dust jacket (chipped at spine ends, corners, rubbed, not price clipped).
The author, the wife of famous explorer and mountaineer Eric Shipton (who participated in five Everest expeditions), describes her six years in Kashgar and Sinkiang, the remote western province of China, in central Asia north of Tibet. Robinson 245: 'The book is a record of her gradual absorption into the rarefied life of Chinese Turkestan'. Neate S57.
US$165. bookID # 12488
STAUNTON, Sir George; An Historical Account of the Embassy to the Emperor of China, Undertaken by Order of the King of Great Britain; including the Manners and Customs of the Inhabitants; and preceded by an account of the causes of the Embassy and Voyage to China. London, Printed for John Stockdale, Piccadilly, 1797, First octavo edition, 8vo [21.5 x 14 cm]; xv, [i], 475, [i, ads], [i, directions for binder], [i, ads] pp, 38 engraved plates on 28 sheets, including frontis, extra engraved title with vignette, 2 folding maps, extra illustrated copy (see below), contemporary full calf, gilt spine title lettering on red spine label, elaborate gilt spine design, marbled endpapers, lower rear joint chipped, front joint with light crack but firm, fine overall, interior is clean, crisp and fresh.
The plates, many of which are by William Alexander, include flora, botanical including camellia sesanqua, fauna, people, views of China. The frontis shows the Earl of Macartney's entrance into China, with cities, canals, etc in background. This copy is extra illustrated with five plates from other sources not in the original work including an engraved view of Rio Janeiro dated 1809 and four hand colored, unsigned engraved plates relating to tea. The extra tea plates are on tea gathering by monkeys, processing tea, making tea chests, warehouse. The extra plates are placed near the text which describes the topics. Tea was of great interest at that time in Britain, China having a monopoly of this luxury product. This is an abridged edition of the official account of the first English embassy to China, published same year as the first edition, which is sometimes available at many times the price. Cox i, p344 (1st edn): It is of considerable interest owing to the descriptions of the various places en route which were visited. . . Great Britain was anxious to establish formal diplomatic relations with China. . . the pall of Chinese reserve and self-sufficiency. . . resisted Lord Macartney's arguments and gifts. However, it gave us a most interesting account of Chinese manners and customs at the close of the eighteenth century'.
US$1200. bookID # 12877
TEILHARD DE CHARDIN, Pierre; Letters from a Traveller. London, Collins, 1962, First edition in English, translated from the French, 8vo [21.5 x 15 cm]; 380 pp, frontis (portrait of author), plates from photos including portraits, double-page map, index, orig cloth, gilt spine title lettering, dj (tear, chipped at edges, not price clipped), endpaper inscription, near fine in good jacket.
The author of The Phenomenon of Man, here describes his geological and palaeontological work and travels in may part, but especially in China, including the deserts of Ordos and Gobi, Mongolian steppes, the Citroen Central Asian Expedition to Sinkiang, Pekin, as well as the development of his philosophy. Included are pieces by Sir Julian Huxley, Claus Aragonnes and Pierre Leroy of different aspects of author.
US$4. bookID # 11824
THORPE, Carlyle; A Journey to the Walnut Sections of Europe and Asia. Los Angeles, privately printed, 1923, First edition, 12mo [20 x14 cm]; [vi], 101 pp, 44 illus from photos on 22 plates, tables, orig cloth backed boards, title cover lettering, fine and clean.
The author travelled in Hawaii, Japan, China, especially Shansi and Hong Kong, Shan Valley, southern Asia, and Europe, especially Italy & France around Grenoble, observing and assessing walnut trees, cultivation methods, varieties, and provides an interesting picture of walnut growing at the time, very nicely illustrated.
US$30. bookID # 12429
TITLEY, Norah and Frances Wood; Oriental Gardens; An Illustrated History. San Francisco, Chronicle Books, [1992], First American edition, 4to [28 x 22.5 cm]; 128 pp, 120 illus, including full-page, from manuscripts and printed books in the British Library, bibliography, index, orig blue cloth, gilt spine title lettering, pictorial endpapers, dj (price clipped), fine and clean.
An interesting survey of the gardens of Ottoman Turkey, Iran, India, China, Japan, and Southeast Asia.
US$16. bookID # 9348
TREVES, Sir Frederick; The Other Side of the Lantern; an Account of a Commonplace Tour Round the World. London/Paris/New York etc, Cassell and Company, 1905, reprint, same year as first edition, 8vo [24 x 16 cm]; xvi, 424, 16 [ads] pp, 40 plates from photos by the author including frontis, index, orig cloth, gilt lettering on front cover and spine, joints rubbed, hinges cracked but holding, slight foxing but a good clean copy.
The author's describes in some detail, his experiences in India, Burma, Ceylon, China, Japan with a brief mention of Hawaii. The frontis appears to by a photogravure. Despite the title the descriptions are quite good
US$28. bookID # 6270
WALKER, Egbert H.; The Plants of China and their Usefulness to Man. Washington, Smithsonian Institution, 1944, , 8vo [24.5 x 15 cm]; [ii], 325-361 pp, 12 plates from photos, many with two images, folding map, bibliog, orig printed heavy paper wraps, clean, unopened copy, near fine.
The author, curator from the US National Museum, describes the economic botany of China by region, uses of the plants, exchanges of plants with other countries, etc with good illustrations.
US$15. bookID # 11796
WEPPNER, Margaretha; The North Star and the Southern Cross; being the Personal Experiences, Impressions and Observations in a Two Years' Journey Round the World. London, New York, Sampson Low, Marston, Low and Searle, and the author, 1876, First edition, 12mo [19 x 13.5 cm]; 2 volumes, x, 505; vii, 504 pp, , extra lithographed title in volume I, double page tinted lithographed plate, orig green cloth, black & gilt decoration, gilt title lettering, short tear on spine, covers lightly rubbed, else a near fine and clean set.
The author travelled in Europe, north Africa, especially Egypt, the Holy Land, China, Japan, East Indies, etc, and seems to have visited most of the tourist places of her time, providing extensive detail on each place visited.
US$55. bookID # 6623
WEPPNER, Margaretha; The North Star and the Southern Cross; being the Personal Experiences, Impressions and Observations in a Two Years' Journey Round the World. London, New York, Sampson Low, Marston, Low and Searle, and the author, 1876, First edition, 12mo [19 x 13.5 cm]; 2 volumes, x, 505; vii, 504 pp, extra lithographed title in volume I, double page tinted lithographed plate, orig cloth, black & gilt decoration, gilt title lettering, light wear to spine head, internal hinge cracked but firm, interior quite clean and fine, covers very good+.
The author travelled in Europe, north Africa, especially Egypt, the Holy Land, China, Japan, East Indies, etc, and seems to have visited most of the tourist places of her time, and provides extensive detail on each place visited.
US$75. bookID # 11725
WHEELWRIGHT, Edith Grey; The Physick Garden; Medicinal Plants and their History. London, Jonathan Cape, 1934, First edition, 8vo [20.5 x 14 cm]; 288 pp, frontis and plates from photos and sketches by Ethel M. Barlow, glossary, index, orig cloth, title lettering on spine and cover, spine title a little faded, clean and near fine, unmarked.
An important and respected history of medicinal plants, herbs, herbals, including from India, China, Chaldea, Egypt, Greece, Rome, Britain, English herbals, the drug trade in Europe, medicinal plant cultivation, etc. The appendix is on the Plants of the Indian Materia Medica.
US$55. bookID # 11777
WHEELWRIGHT, Edith Grey; The Physick Garden; Medicinal Plants and their History. Boston & New York, Houghton Mifflin Company, 1935, First American edition, 8vo [21 x 14 cm]; 288 pp, frontis and plates from photos and sketches by Ethel M. Barlow, glossary, index, orig cloth, spine title lettering, clean and near fine.
An important and respected history of medicinal plants, herbs, herbals, including from India, China, Chaldea, Egypt, Greece, Rome, Britain, English herbals, the drug trade in Europe, medicinal plant cultivation, etc. The appendix is on the Plants of the Indian Materia Medica.
US$45. bookID # 11646
WILSON, Ernest H.; Aristocrats of the Garden. Garden City, New Yorki, Doubleday, Page & Company, 1917, First edition, the limited edition of 1200 copies of which this is #168, 8vo [23 x 15 cm]; xxv, [i], 312 pp, frontis, numerous plates from the author's photos, index, orig cloth-backed boards, title lettering on spine paper label, t. e. g., frontis margin a little rippled, else clean and near fine.
The author writes of roses, lilies, flowering trees, hardy climbing shrubs, ornamental fruit trees, hardy conifers, new trees from China, Japanese cherries, Asiatic crabapples, rhododendrons, Davidia, etc. Wilson, who brought back thousands of plants from his plant collecting expeditions to China and Japan, many of which were new to science, and who became Keeper of the Arnold Arboretum in Boston, writes with considerable knowledge of the origin, history, propagation and usefulness of some of the best garden plants. He describes some of the new plants he introduced.
US$150. bookID # 11541
WILSON, Ernest H.; Aristocrats of the Garden. Boston, The Stratford Company, 1926, First edition, 8vo [24 x 16.5 cm]; xxv, [i], 312 pp, frontis, numerous plates from the author's photos, index, orig cloth with gilt lettering on front cover and spine, gilt vignette of flowers on spine, t. e. g., spine edges a little rubbed, minor wear, near fine, clean copy.
The author writes of roses, lilies, flowering trees, hardy climbing shrubs, ornamental fruit trees, hardy conifers, new trees from China, Japanese cherries, Asiatic crabapples, rhododendrons, Davidia, etc. Wilson, who brought back thousands of plants from his plant collecting expeditions to China and Japan, many of which were new to science, and who became Keeper of the Arnold Arboretum in Boston, writes with considerable knowledge of the origin, history, propagation and usefulness of some of the best garden plants. He describes some of the new plants he introduced.
US$20. bookID # 9642
WILSON, Ernest H.; China Mother of Gardens. Boston, The Stratford Company, [1929], First Edition, the author's signed edition, large 8vo [26.5 x 18 cm]; [vi], x [i] 408 pp, frontis, plus 60 plates, folding map partly colored at end, index, title page printed in red and black, orig decorated cloth, gilt spine title lettering, top edge gilted, other edges uncut as issued, partly unopened, lightly rubbed at spine, bookplate of Robert G. Stone, a fine and clean copy, signed by author.
Wilson was one of the prime botanical collectors in China and Japan in the early 1900's, introducing many species. Besides his descriptions of the plants he found, including some fascinating adventures in little explored places, he describes the geography, the native peoples and tribes, temples, timber trees, cultivated gardens and fruits, agriculture plant products, tea and tea-yielding plants, etc, during his extensive explorations, including Szechuan, Ancient Kingdom of Pa, Sungpan Ting, the Chino-Tibetan border area, Tachienly, Omei Shan, Laolin. 'He crossed the Laolin from north to south, probably the only European to have done so' [Coats - The Plant Hunters, p. 120]. There is also a much more common unsigned edition printed at the same time.
US$300. bookID # 11408
WILSON, Ernest H.; Plant Hunting. Boston, The Stratford Company, 1927, First edition, 8vo [24 x 17 cm]; 2 volumes, xxix, 248; ix, 276 pp, 127 plates from photos, map endpapers, index, orig green cloth with gilt title lettering, spine a little faded, interior is clean and fine, in very good covers.
Wilson, originally worked for Kew and later became the keeper of the Arnold Arboretum at Harvard University, was one of the most important plant collectors of his time, having traveled extensively in China and Japan, where he found many new species which were introduced to the west for the first time. These included lilies, rhododendrons, azaleas, hydrangea, cherries, jasmine, etc. This work surveys his many travels, including Africa, Australia and New Zealand, the tropics of America, China, Japan. He provides excellent descriptions of plant life including orchids, as well as natural history, the people he encountered, and a good overview of previous plant exploration.
US$220. bookID # 10797
WILSON, Ernest H.; The Lilies of Eastern Asia; A Monograph. London, Dulau & Company, [1925, First edition, 4to [28.5 x 21 cm]; xiv, 110, [ii] pp, frontis and 16 plates at end (complete), index, orig green cloth, spine title lettering, slight wear at lower edge, endpaper signature, very good overall, interior clean.
A classic on the subject by the greatest plant hunter to have collected specimens in China. He studied lilies for over 20 years and has the advantage of having seen them all in their wild state. An authority on the subject, he correctly believed that there would be no additional species found in Eastern Asia. He describes each species in detail including their first discovery by plant collectors. He later headed the Arnold Arboretum at Harvard University. Oxford Companion to Gardening 608. See Coats' Plant Hunters.
US$140. bookID # 12575
WILSON, J. Tuzo; One Chinese Moon. Toronto, New York, London, Longmans, Green and Company, [1959], First edition, 8vo [22 x 15 cm]; xiii, 274 pp, illus from photos on plates, map, index, orig black pictorial cloth, white title lettering on spine, dj (short tears), else near fine and clean.
A travel narrative by renowned Canadian geophysicist, through China in 1958, to Peking (Beijing) via the Trans-Siberian Railway and through the interior, with independent observations of the country as it was, the people, conditions, interesting adventures and experiences.
US$8. bookID # 12133
WILSON, J. Tuzo; One Chinese Moon. Toronto, New York, London, Longmans, Green and Company, [1959], First edition, 8vo [22 x 15 cm]; xiii, 274 pp, illus from photos on plates, map, index, orig black pictorial cloth, white title lettering on spine, dj (chipped at edges), else near fine and clean.
A travel narrative by renowned Canadian geophysicist, through China in 1958, to Peking (Beijing) via the Trans-Siberian Railway and through the interior, with independent observations of the country as it was, the people, conditions, interesting adventures and experiences.
US$6. bookID # 12188
WOODCOCK, George; Caves in the Desert; Travels in China. Vancouver, Toronto, Douglas & McIntyre, [1988], First edition, 8vo [23.5 x 15.5 cm]; [vi], 201 pp, illus from photos, orig blue cloth with silver title lettering on spine, dj (price sticker on rear panel), inscribed on endpaper, near fine, clean copy.
The author, one of the best modern travel writers and winner of the Governor Generals award for an earlier book, describes his journey through northern China to visit the traditional Buddhist centers off the beaten track, around the fabled Silk Road, including Datong, Yungang, Wutai San, Xi'an, Dunhuang, etc, with interesting discoveries and experiences informed by his deep knowledge of Chinese culture, religion and history.
US$6. bookID # 8946
WRIGHT, G. N. [George Newenham], drawings by Thomas Allom; China, in a series of Views, Displaying the Scenery, Architecture, and Social Habits of that Ancient Empire. London, Fisher, Son, & Co., [1843], First edition, 4to [26 x 22 cm]; 4 volumes bound in two, [iv], 94; [iv], 5-72; [iv], 5-67; [iv], 5-56 pp, 124 fine engraved plates after Allom, each with tissue guard, plus 4 extra engraved title pages, total of 128 plates, index, contemporary half green morocco, gilt spine title lettering & elaborate decorations, all edges gilted, matching marbled boards & endpapers, boards lightly rubbed, light offsetting on tissue guards but a clean, unmarked fine set in handsome binding.
Taylor 37. Cordier, Sinica 80. A complete set of one of the best illustrated works on China of the period. A superb copy.
US$2200. bookID # 12362
YATES, Raymond F.; Antique Fakes and their Detection. New York, Gramercy Publishing Company, [1950], First edition, 8vo [21 x 14 cm]; x, [i], 229 pp, illus from photos and drawings, index, orig blue cloth, spine title lettering, fine and clean condition.
Contains practical information and methods for detecting fake jewelry, furniture, china, glass, prints, paintings, hardware, plates, silver, timepieces, etc.
US$5. bookID # 12126
YULE, Sir Henry; Cathay and the Way Hither; Being a Collection of Medieval Notices of China. London, The Hakluyt Society, 1866, First edition, 8vo [22 x 14.5 cm]; 2 volumes, complete with 5 colored maps on 3 folding sheets, other illus including frontis, bibliog, index, orig blind-stamped cloth, gilt vignette on covers and gilt spine title lettering, professionally rebacked preserving orig spines and covers, edgewear, minor foxing on few leaves, very good, presentation copy signed by Yule.
Main topics include the intercourse between China and the west prior to the discovery of the Cape route, Odoric of Pordenone, missionary friars, Rashiduddin, Pegolotti, Marignolli, Ibn Batuta, Benedict Goes, etc with appendices and an extensive 250 page introduction and other introductory material. Cordier.
US$800. bookID # 10298
YULE, Sir Henry, Henri Cordier; Cathay and the Way Hither; Being a Collection of Medieval Notices of China. London, Hakluyt Society, 1913-1916, Revised and best edition, the first edition was 1866 in two volumes, 8vo [21.5 x 14.5 cm]; 4 volumes, complete with 3 plates, including 2 frontis's, 4 folding maps including 2 colored nicely backed on linen, other illus, bibliog, index, contemporary half green morocco, gilt title lettering on leather labels, marbled edges & endpapers, one volume with faded spine (lettering clear) & scuffed, library bookplates on front endpapers, gilt stamps on covers but no other marks, clean near fine.
Cordier thoroughly revised the original edition of 1866, greatly expanded it, and brought it up-to-date based on later research and findings, including those of Aurel Stein, Ed Chavannes, Paul Pelliot. Main topics include the intercourse between China and the west prior to the discovery of the Cape route, Odoric of Pordenone, missionary friars, Rashiduddin, Pegolotti, Marignolli, Ibn Batuta, Benedict Goes, etc. This set also has included 'An Address on the Occasion of the Tercentenary of the Death of Richard Hakluyt' by Albert Gray, published by the Hakluyt Society in 1917, and the Hakluyt Society catalogue with a description of each book published up to that time. Cordier.
US$700. bookID # 9494
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