8vo. [4], 403 pp., half-title, 3 woodcuts in text, later quarter calf, title gilt on spine, occasional foxing heavy on half-title page, otherwise copy in very good condition, Paris, Firmin Didot, [1826].

Synopsis

First edition, all published, though the last leaf reads ‘fin de la première partie’. The second part was never published, except for a few fragments which appeared in Pouqueville’s Voyage de la Grèce. Only a small number of copies were printed, as the work was not intended for a commercial venture. It is dedicated to Korais, with whom Firmin Didot studied ancient and modern Greek. He finished his studies in Cydonia in Asia Minor and was later attached to the French Embassy in Constantinople.
His travels in 1816-17 covered Greece, Turkey, Asia Minor, Egypt, Palestine, Lebanon and Cyprus. Firmin Didot was a devoted philhellene and became principal promoter of the Paris Greek committee; he was also very much interested in promoting the cause of Greek letters and sent printing presses to Chios and Nauplion.
Bibliographic references: Blackmer, 485; Weber I, 142; Carré II, 377; Hilmy I, 188; Saulcy, 306; Droulia, 1123; Röhricht p. 348 – 9; Schur, 172.