Young, John.

Estimate

60,000 - 90,000 GBP

bidding is closed

Description

A Series of Portraits of the Emperors of Turkey, from the foundation of the monarchy to the year 1808. Engraved from pictures painted at Constantinople by command of Sultan Selim the Third. With a biographical account of each of the Emperors. London: William Bulmer and Co., 1815
paper

First (and only) edition, first issue, folio (538 x 405mm.), text in English and French, engraved title in French and 30 mezzotinted portrait plates, all printed in colours, contemporary green morocco, sides with multiple gilt borders, two of which enclosing gilt crescents, stars and tughras, spine similarly decorated, gilt edges, bookseller's ticket of P. Rolandi (of Berners St., [London]), plates somewhat spotted in margins, binding slightly rubbed

Literature

Abbey, Travel 372; Atabey 1350; Blackmer 1863

Catalogue Note

A strikingly bound copy of one of the greatest colour-plate books on the Ottoman Empire. The plates in this copy display a very light palette and it is probable that no additional hand-colouring (found to varying degrees in other copies) has been added to the plates which are already printed in colours.

Young's work was first commissioned and patronised by Selim III, but production was halted in 1807 when the Sultan was assassinated by the Janissaries. Mahmoud II became Sultan in 1808 and in 1810 he gave Young permission to continue publication.

This is the first issue of the work with the general title (which is often missing) omitting the wording "completed by command of Sultan Mahmoud the Second". It is followed by the dedication, and sub-titles in English and French. The text is numbered pp.1-128 followed by 2 unnumbered pages ("Mustapha IV"). The paper is watermarked 1808.