A very handsomely printed book in Arabic and Latin.

•  Lambrecht 1129. 19th-century German boards covered with black mottled paper, boards and spine abraded; paper spine-label with hand-lettering. Institutional bookplate on front pastedown. Four-digit number in ink at base of first p. V. Housed in a modern quarter brown morocco tray case with raised bands on spine, each accented above and below with gilt beading (our last image shows the volume lying in its box). One spine compartment with title, another with publication place and dates, all others with gilt center device. A very acceptable copy of a scarce and important work for Arabic studies.

Provenance: Inked ownership inscription of Michael Gundelsheimer (d. 1715), at base of title-page, partially cut off by binder’s trimming. Gundelsheimer was Archdeacon of Feuchtwangen in the Margravate of Nuremberg, and was noted for his travels in the Middle East.

•  Full 17th-century calf, covers ruled in blind and spine neatly gilt with green leather label in one compartment, impress from another label (now lacking) in a second compartment, and an elegant “flower encircled” device in others compartments. Cover leather lightly waterstained in two places and shallowly abraded with some small black stains; spine leather cracking with some tears and chipping at extremities, faint white markings in bottom compartment, and cracking along joints. Title-page with ownership inscription touched by trimming as above, and traces of shelf location once pencilled on. A few leaves shallowly extruded. Scattered light foxing and browning, occasional traces of soiling, and a little cockling. Slip from bookseller’s catalogue on front pastedown. Marbled endpapers. All edges red.

•  Steineschneider, Catalogus Librorum Hebraeorum, 5085. Contemporary paste paper–covered boards, spine with hand-inked title label; binding rubbed and abraded, spine with stamped shelving number. All edges stained red. Front pastedown with 19th-century private collector’s bookplate.

•  Blackmer Collection 942; Atabey Collection 659; Tobler 153; Rohricht 1776; Europa und der Orient 336. This ed. not in Brunet. Publisher's blind-stamped cloth, spines with gilt-stamped title; cloth gently faded with spine extremities chipped, spine titles dimmed, front covers of vols. I and II detached, cloth starting along joints of vol. IV, spines with later paper shelving labels. Front pastedowns each with institutional bookplate. Vols. II and III lacking frontispieces; frontispiece and first few leaves of vol. I separated. Light to moderate foxing throughout; some corners dog-eared. Maps foxed but otherwise clean and crisp. (19642)

The work is illustrated with five plates and four large, folding maps, as well as five wood-engraved, in-text cuts.

Preceding the text is a folding map of the Nile River Valley and a one-page publisher's advertisement. Introductory matter consists of a preface, a dedication (to “S.A.R. Madame, Duchesse de Berry”), and a notice warning the traveler interested inmummies to beware of fakes. On pp. 321–71: “Rapports faits par les diverses académies et sociétés savantes de France, sur les ouvrages et collections rapportés de l'Égypte et de la Nubie. Par M. Rifaud.”

Paged separately, following the text, are extensive lists ofwords in the local dialects including “Vocabulaire des dialectes vulgaires de la Hautes-Egypt,” “Vocabulaire de la Nigritie de Fachetrou,” and some basic Arabic vocabulary. The final six pages consists of a list of place-names: “Noms et nombre des iles de la seconde cataracte du Nil.” A search of OCLC produces only one copy with these 60 pages on language, located at the University of Pennsylvania.   Eight other copies located via OCLC seem to have been issued without them.

•  Recent marbled paper-covered boards. Small abrasions at top edge of several preface pages; shallow tear in upper margin of pp. 47/48 (second sequence), touching but not costing a couple of letters; sliver of loss to blank area of outer margin of pp. 267/268. Generally clean, with only the odd spot; small ink jotting on front free endpaper. Map in very good condition, free of spots and tears. Four-digit inked numeral at base of recto of f. [3]. Very good and attractively rebound.  (23908)

•  VD16 S1581. Removed from a nonce volume, in later wrappers. Dust-soiled. Library pressure-stamp and private owner's (old) inked signature on title-page. A very good copy. (21113)

•  Contemporary vellum pleasantly panelled in blind with arabesques as centerpieces on covers; spine with inked title, light soiling, corners a little bumped. Some tears along turn-ins. Paper generally clean with traces (only) of soiling; on title-page, small stain obscuring one letter. Inked ownership inscription on verso of title-leaf and signs of one-time pencillings on recto. All edges red.

•  Contemporary calf, spine gilt and with red leather label. Leather dry and flaking, with loss over corners, joints open but sewing holding, chipping at head and foot of spine, and crack down center of spine: This volume could split. Ownership inscriptions in ink on front pastedown and reverse of frontispiece. Browning from turn-ins onto endpapers and fly-leaves; light to moderate foxing throughout. All edges speckled red.