An Authentic Account of an Embassy from the King of Great Britain to the Emperor of China;
Including Cursory Observations made, and information obtained, in travelling through that Ancient Empire, and a Small Part of Chinese Tartary.
London. G. Nicol. 1797. Stock ID #180356 First edition of Lord Macartney's voyage and embassy to China (1792-4) by his secretary and "Minister Plenipotentiary in the absence of the Ambassador", George Staunton. Many of the illustrations are after drawings by William Alexander whose "views remained unrivalled until the era of photography" (Lowendahl). When referring to this item please quote stockid 180356.
The two text volumes, 29.5 x 22 cm, [2], xxxiv, 518; xx, 626 pages, engraved portrait frontispieces of Tchien Lung and the Lord Macartney (bound at variance to the List of Engravings, trimmed and laid down, with the stamps of Gloucester Library to the verso), twenty five text and one full-page engraving (of the Camellia Sasanqua), newspaper cutting mounted on a rear blank of the first Volume (1974 review of the late John Frodsham's "The First Chinese embassy to the West." by Nigel Dennis); handsome period style half-calf over marbled boards, spine gilt-ruled in compartments with a maroon title-label, speckled edges, scant foxing and toning, a remarkably fresh, clean set.
Early signature to the title-page of Volume II, possibly that of John Foster (1740-1828) the last Speaker of the Irish House of Commons, and likely his neat annotations to the List of Engravings, Library stamps of Rosstrevor House Library to initial blanks, the armorial bookplates of John Stafford Reid Byers (1903-1984) a barrister-at-law who lived in Newcastle, County Down, Ireland and who served in the Ministry of Economic Warfare in 1939.
Lowendahl 697 (text only); Lust 545.
Price: $4,750.00 AU