Rauwolf, Leonhard (?1535-1596).

3 parts in one, 4to (183 x 150mm.), [16], 487, [1]pp., title-page printed in red and black, separate title-pages for second and third parts, contemporary marginalia in German and Latin throughout, illustration: woodcut illustration on each title-page, binding: contemporary half vellum over boards, ink title on spine, pages trimmed with slight loss to woodcut border of title-page and some of the manuscript marginalia, final leaf torn with loss (not affecting text), staining to last few leaves, spotting, binding worn

Shelf mark N:77 and monogram dated 1721

VD16 R430

Rauwolf, an Augsburg physician, travelled to the Near East in 1753 to collect and describe the flora of the region. His account of the three-year journey gives details not only of the plants he encountered but also of the people and customs and of the difficulties of travel. His description of the preparation in Aleppo of coffee ("black as ink... they drink it early in the morning... as hot as they can") was the first such report by a European. He went on to visit Constantinople, Baghdad and Jerusalem. A fourth part, containing 42 woodcuts of plants, was published in 1583.