Lot n° 38
Estimation :
600 - 800
EUR
Result without fees
Result
: 650EUR
CASTELLAN (Antoine-Laurent - Lot 38
CASTELLAN (Antoine-Laurent
)Moeurs, usages, costumes des Othomans, et abrégé de leur histoire... Avec des éclaircissemens tirés d'ouvrages orientaux, et communiqués par M. Langlès.
Paris : Nepveu, 1812. - 6 volumes in-18, paperback.
First edition of this collection containing "the substance of a host of folios whose reading is sometimes instructive and most often tiring" (Foreword, p. 6, volume 1).
Castellan and his collaborators, in particular M. Langlès, thus set out to "reduce to the simplest elements what is truly curious in the history, customs, habits and costumes of the Turks"; the text is sprinkled with anecdotes intended to avoid "monotony and dryness", "which paint the peoples and individuals much better than long dissertations would do" (Foreword, p. 9, volume 1).
The work opens with a "Foreword" followed by a "Historical Précis on Mahomet and the Khalyfes". The first two volumes contain the historical summary. The third volume deals with the Ottoman court, i.e., all that is contained in the seraglio. The fourth is devoted to the government, the designation of the great offices of the Empire, the administration of justice, finance, war, etc. The fifth deals with the judicial organization, the ministers of religion, its external practices, and Islamism. The last volume deals with costumes, arts and crafts, and various particularities that could not be covered in the other five volumes.
The edition is sought after above all for its 72 plates by the painter and draughtsman Antoine-Laurent Castellan (1772-1838), which perfectly depict costumes, monuments and picturesque scenes.
Copy as issued, stapled, complete with all plates here in colour. Each cover is illustrated with a different vignette.
Soiling, some tears and wetness to covers, tears and tears to some spines. The spine of volume 3 has been partly rebuilt and restored. Scattered foxing. Occasionally heavy spotting in the second volume, minor spotting in the other volumes.
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