Nicolay, Nicolas de.

Estimate

15,000 - 20,000 GBP

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Description

Vier Bucher von de Raisz und Schiffart in die Turckey. Antwerp: Wilhelm Silvius, 1576

Second edition in German, 4to (194 x 142mm.), ruled in red throughout, title within historiated woodcut border, 61 full-page woodcut illustrations within typographical borders, title and all illustrations coloured in a contemporary hand, many heightened with gold, eighteenth-century orange vellum, housed in a modern calf book-style box, title soiled, occasional slight soiling, spotting or staining elsewhere, L4 inserted from another copy (soiled and without red ruling), binding somewhat rubbed with loss of colour (mainly to spine), remains of old label on spine, lacking ties

Provenance

Sebastian Schedel, book label

Literature

cf. Blackmer 1196; Göllner 1662; Lipperheide 1399a; cf. Weber II, 166 (German edition of 1577); cf. Atabey 870-872

Catalogue Note

coloured copies of this work are rare.

Nicolay (1517-1583) was the royal geographer sent by Henri II of France to Constantinople to join Gabriel d'Aramon's embassy to Suleiman the Magnificent in 1551-52. He had previously visited Turkey and Greece in about 1542. His illustrations have been considered the most important introduction to Turkish costumes. Colas notes "...c'est la première série de documents serieux sur les habillements du proche Orient".

The costumes illustrated include those of Algiers, Malta, Chios, Paros, Greece, Mecca pilgrims, Persia, Armenia, Macedonia, as well as numerous Turkish subjects.