London: [Eliot's Court Press] for George Bishop, 1609.. [16],307pp. plus folding engraved map (9 1/4 x 19 1/4 inches). Small quarto. Modern dark... More

London: [Eliot's Court Press] for George Bishop, 1609.. [16],307pp. plus folding engraved map (9 1/4 x 19 1/4 inches). Small quarto. Modern dark green morocco, gilt boards and spine, a.e.g., gilt dentelles. Bound by Sangorski and Sutcliffe. Upper outer joint slightly tender. Bookplates of Boies Penrose on front pastedown ("Ex Libris Boies Penrose II") and front free endpaper ("Old East India House Ex Libris Boies Penrose"). Slight age-toning throughout. First leaf (blank save for a single fleuron) in facsimile, a few small repairs to titlepage and first two preliminary leaves (affecting a few letters). Repaired minor tear across lower border of map. A very good copy. The rare first English edition of this premier source for the history of Canada, published the same year as the French first edition, complete with the first contemporary and detailed map of Canada. Lescarbot was a French writer and lawyer who spent the winter of 1606-7 at Port Royal, Acadia. He gives accounts of early French voyages and discoveries in America such as those of Villegagnon to Brazil, Verrazzano, Ribaut and Laudonni? to Florida, Champlain, sieurs de Poutrincourt and de Monts, Cartier, and Roberval. Also included is much information concerning the Indian tribes, especially those of northeastern Canada, to whom the second book in this English edition is devoted. Much of the material Lescarbot collected himself, interviewing members of the early expeditions and recording his own observations and experiences. Field, in describing the first French edition, states: "His descriptions of Indian Life and peculiarities are very interesting, an account both of their fidelity, and from being among the first authentic relations, we have of them after Cartier." As with so many important works on American published in English in this era, the author, translator, and scholar Richard Hakluyt played a role in the publication of the English edition of Lescarbot. The translator Pierre Erondelle states in the introduction that Hakluyt had asked him to translate the work both to describe Canada and also "for the particular use of this nation, to the end that comparing the goodness of lands of the northern parts herein mentioned with that of Virginia, which...must be far better by reason it stands more southerly nearer to the sun; greater encouragement may be given to prosecute that generous and goodly action." Thus accounts of Canada, in Hakluyt's reckoning, would enhance the promotional materials of the Virginia Company, then being published in London. The large map, "Figure de la Terre Neuue, Grand Riviere de Canada, et C? de l'Ocean en la Novvelle France," was also issued with the first French edition, and is considered the most accurate cartographic representation of the area at the time. "The map extends up the St. Lawrence River as far as the Indian village Hochelaga, or Montreal as we know it. The first trading post in Canada, founded in 1600 at Tadousac, is shown at the mouth of the R. de Saguenay and just next to that is the River Lesquemin mistakenly named in reverse. Kebec is shown here for the first time on a printed map in its Micmac form, meaning the narrows of the river" - Burden. The rare English translation of an early significant history of Canada, with the most accurate contemporary map of the region. EUROPEAN AMERICANA 609/68. SABIN 40175. CHURCH 341. VAIL 16. HARRISSE NOUVELLE FRANCE 19. BORBA DE MORAES, pp.406-7. FIELD 916. STC 15491. SCHWARTZ & EHRENBERG, pp.88-90. BURDEN 157 (map). McCORKLE, NEW ENGLAND IN EARLY PRINTED MAPS 609.1 (map). PAYNE, RICHARD HAKLUYT, 22. Less

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Paris: Estienne Michallet, 1681.. [2],16,43,[1],18,[2],32,[4],20,14,8,16pp. including six plates and errata leaf, plus two folding maps (of three,... More

Paris: Estienne Michallet, 1681.. [2],16,43,[1],18,[2],32,[4],20,14,8,16pp. including six plates and errata leaf, plus two folding maps (of three, lacking the equipolar projection map, "Explication de la carte de la Decouverte de la Terre d'Ielmer") and three plates (two folding), with eleven engravings in the text. Contemporary calf, spine gilt, raised bands. Chipped at spine ends, a bit of wear along upper and lower portions of front hinge, bottom edge of rear board slightly worn. A few neat corrections in a contemporary hand. Tasman map and the two folding plates with closed tears along the bound-in edge, but with no loss. Small closed tear along one fold of the Mississippi map, but with no loss. Overall, a very good copy, lacking only the equipolar projection map. In a half morocco box. The very rare first edition of Thevenot's collection of travels, and an essential document in the exploration of the interior of North America. This is a very complex book bibliographically, and there are many variant issues, especially in the part of the work devoted to natural history discoveries of Swammerdam and others. Many copies lack some of the natural history components. Its importance and value, however, derive from the section and accompanying map devoted to the travels of Marquette and Joliet and the map showing the discoveries of Abel Tasman, and these are identical in both editions. The most notable aspect of Thevenot is that it contains the first publication of Father Marquette's relation of his discovery, with Joliet, of the upper Mississippi River and their exploration as far as the Arkansas River in 1673. This remarkable expedition established the basic structure of the Mississippi headwaters for the first time, and opened the way for the dominance of the French in the Mississippi Valley over the next century. Their account begins on May 17, 1673, when the party set out in two canoes from Mackinac. They reached the Mississippi via Green Bay and the Fox River on June 17, floated as far south as Arkansas, and returned north by way of the Illinois and Des Plaines rivers and the later site of Chicago. The accompanying map is a major landmark of American cartography, "Carte de la decouverte faite l'an 1673, dans l'Amerique Septentrionale." The map is the first to bear the word "Michigan," and shows the lake of that name and the Mississippi River from its headwaters to the sea. A figure appears in the center of the map, identified as "Manit8," representing an Indian god. The map appears here in its third state, as usual, with the date of 1673 in the title of the map. Burden convincingly asserts that the first and second states (known in only one copy each) were almost certainly proofs. This is one of the most important American frontier exploration narratives. Howes says: "The first edition of Thevenot's RECUEIL, while less rare than Le Clerq's PREMIER ETABLISSEMENT DE LA FOI, 1691, is of equal importance...." "The first printed representation of the Mississippi based on actual observation" - Streeter. The other sections of Thevenot's work are of considerable interest as well. The Tasman map is one of the first to show parts of the Australian coastline in detail, based on his 1644 voyage. It shows part of the coast of New Guinea, Tasmania, and much of the east coast of Australia, and is a basic work of Australian cartography. It is present here in its third issue, with the Tropic of Capricorn inserted and with the rhumblines. "In any state the map is a great rarity. It is one of the earliest charts devoted entirely to Australia, and is the first French map of Australia" - Davidson. There is also an account of explorations in polar regions by the Dutch in 1680, which is usually accompanied by a third map, an equipolar projection, which is lacking from this copy. The third exploration piece is an account of a trip overland from Russia to China in 1653. Finally, there is a discourse on navigation, and the natural history sections discussing the illustration of insects. A major work of Americana, with one of the landmark accounts and maps of the discovery of the Mississippi Valley. CHURCH 672. HARRISSE NOUVELLE FRANCE 147. SABIN 95332. WORLD ENCOMPASSED 211. STREETER SALE 101. SIEBERT SALE 659. HOWES T156, "c." EUROPEAN AMERICANA 681/141. BURDEN 540. CLEMENTS, 100 MICHIGAN RARITIES 4. GREENLY MICHIGAN 6. GRAFF 4122. JONES 320. TOOLEY, MAPPING OF AUSTRALIA AND ANTARCTICA, plate 92. Davidson, A BOOK COLLECTOR’S NOTES, pp.28-29. Less

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Amsterdam: Cornelis Claesz, 1596 - 1595 - 1596.. Three parts bound in one volume (parts two and three bound in reverse order in this copy). Text in... More

Amsterdam: Cornelis Claesz, 1596 - 1595 - 1596.. Three parts bound in one volume (parts two and three bound in reverse order in this copy). Text in double columns. [8],160; 134,[4],135-147,[8]; 82,[1]pp. plus a total of six folding or double-page maps, thirty- six folding or double-page plates, and a single-page portrait of Linschoten. Folio. Contemporary vellum, elaborately tooled in gilt, spine with gilt compartments, silk ties, yapp edges. Recased, with new endpapers. Maps and folding plates with some occasional slight chipping or splits at folds, repaired on versos in some cases. Occasional tanning or foxing. Overall, a handsome copy, brilliantly colored. In a chemise and half morocco and cloth slipcase, spine gilt. A remarkable copy of the first edition of the most important description of the East Indies in the Age of Discovery, with beautiful early hand-coloring and in a handsome contemporary vellum binding, likely a special presentation copy. Linschoten's work was of tremendous importance, as it unlocked the secrets of Asian trade routes, once the exclusive domain of the Portuguese, for the rest of Europe Jan Huygen van Linschoten (1563-1611) a Dutchman born in Haarlem in 1563, had an "avaricious thirst for knowledge which enabled him to get detailed information of land and sea as far afield as the Spice Islands and China" (Penrose). Linschoten travelled to Goa in 1583 as a clerk of the newly- appointed Portuguese Archbishop of Goa. He made a few trips into India, compiling notes on his experiences, gleaned information on sea routes from Portuguese sailors, and collected information from other sources as well. Linschoten left India in 1589, hired as a pepper factor for the Fugger and Welser interests, where he learned about the organization and administration of the spice trade. Returning to Holland in 1592 (after a two-year stay in the Azores), he prepared his notes for the Amsterdam publisher, Claeszoon, in response to interest in the Netherlands and other European countries about commercial possibilities in Asia. As trade in the Far East was dependent on routes via America or Africa, his work eventually encompassed the entire globe, including Spanish and Portuguese activities in America. Linschoten's practical experience lent authenticity to his work, and it remains one of the most important of all travel books. Linschoten's ITINERARIO... and the two other works published in 1595 and 1596 (which should properly be found together, as here) soon was considered the single most significant source regarding the East and West Indies and numerous editions were published in Dutch, Latin, French, German, and English. Klooster describes the work as "a magnificent panorama of pictures and maps of the non-European world. ITINERARIO contained so much detailed and accurate information about shipping lanes, winds, and currents, that seafarers could use it virtually as a handbook. Many of his maps were in fact copies of the excellent models of the Portuguese cartographer Fern?Vaz Dourado." It was the most comprehensive account of the East and West Indies available at the beginning of the 17th century. As well as including important travel accounts taken from contemporary Portuguese, Dutch, and Spanish sources, it is the first work to include precise sailing instructions for the Indies, and, according to Church (and other authorities), "it was given to each ship sailing from Holland to India." The second section, REYS-GHESCHRIFT VANDE NAVIGATIEN..., was published in 1595, a year before the ITINERARIO..., and is bound last in this copy. The text gives detailed sailing directions for the East Indies, as well as for Brazil and the West Indies. The third part (bound second in this copy) gives an account of America on pages 17-82, especially the coastal regions, and includes information on the African coast as well. It is found here in its first state (see Church), and was published in 1596. The maps include van Langren's maps of the East Indies and South America (including the Caribbean and Florida), and the double- hemispherical world map of Plancius dated 1596 (Shirley 192). The marvellous plates include scenes of Asia, particularly Java, China, and India. Several of the plates depict activities in Goa, including a wonderful panoramic view of the market, while other plates depict Portuguese travellers on land and on sea. Linschoten's is an important work that served not only as a valuable record, but also as a catalyst for change in the balance of power amongst European trading nations in the east: "the navigator's vade mecum for the Eastern seas" (Penrose). When Linschoten returned from Goa to his home in the Netherlands, he did so at a time when the people of northern Europe and particularly his countrymen were especially interested in what he had to report concerning the trading activities of the Portuguese in the East. His most important and far- reaching observations concerned the gradual decline of Portuguese power in the East and her ability to protect her trade routes and monopolies. This, together with the trading possibilities he detailed, encouraged a series of Dutch, French, and English fleets to set sail for the Spice Islands, and beyond to China and Japan. Lach says that Linschoten's description of Goa is "one of the most original and reliable narratives prepared during the sixteenth century on life at the hub of Portugal's Eastern empire and still is regarded as one of the best sources for Goa's history at the peak of its glory....The original edition...contains a number of excellent maps, three of which are of great value for the study of Asia. These maps, which are much better and more detailed than earlier printed maps, were clearly derived from the latest and best Portuguese charts of the Eastern oceans and sea coasts" - Lach. Parry calls Linschoten's work "a journal of human adventure and observation, an uplifting story that appeals on many levels." "Fine copies of this work with all the maps and plates are extremely rare" - Church catalogue. A work of tremendous consequence and importance, here in a handsome copy with lovely contemporary hand- coloring. EUROPEAN AMERICANA 596/63 & 596/64. JCB I, pp.343-345. SHIRLEY 192, 182. SABIN 41356. TIELE 84-87. KLOOSTER, DUTCH IN THE AMERICAS, p.8 & catalogue item 5. David E. Parry, THE CARTOGRAPHY OF THE EAST INDIAN ISLANDS, p.84-85. CHURCH 252. HOWGEGO L131. BORBA DE MORAES, pp.486-487. WAGNER, NORTHWEST COAST 184. Lach, ASIA IN THE MAKING OF EUROPE, volume 1, pp.198-204 & 482-489. Less

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