[Cassas, Louis François.

first edition, 2 volumes, folio (650 x 470mm.), 180 engraved plates after Cassas, 27 double-page, 18 with modern colouring, modern green quarter morocco (spines numbered vol.1 and vol.2-3 and dated 1795), marginal staining to a few plates at the beginning of each volume, small marginal tears with slight loss to a couple of plates

Blackmer 295; Atabey 201; Weber II, 597; Cohen-de Ricci 204-205; Tobler p.134; Röhricht 1498; not in Cobham-Jeffery

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, where appropriate
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Cassas accompanied Choiseul-Gouffier on his embassy to Constantinople in 1784. He stayed in the Levant until 1787, travelling in the Archipelago, Syria and Egypt making drawings, some of which were engraved for Choiseul-Gouffier's Voyage pittoresque de la Grèce. The plates in this work include views in Syria, Lebanon, Egypt and Cyprus.

The number of plates contained in this work varies, although most copies seem, like this one, to contain 180 (the Blackmer copy had 178 plates). Thirty livraisons of plates were published, with text for the first seven livraisons only. Apparently a general title was never printed. the present copy is a particularly large copy and does not have the plates folded, thereby avoiding the usual creasing - by way of comparison the Atabey copy was 527 x 327mm.