Oblong 4to. 243 pp., [3], numerous b/w & color photographs, drawings, maps, facsimile pages from original manuscripts, cloth in d/w, biblio, Editions Dar An-Nahar, Beirut, 2007.

Synopsis

A rare manuscript discovered by Fouad Debbas and printed here for the first time.
A travel account by Madame de Perthius who travelled to the Near East twice in 1853-1855 and 1860-1861. She was the mother of Edmond de Perthuis, a significant player in the economy of Syria. He constructed the first major road between Beirut and Damascus which was opened in 1863.
‘Through Madame de Perthuis’ memoirs, we are able to move in the social circles her son frequented. It was a high society that was not as worldly or powerful as that of, say, the capital Istanbul, but it carried its weight as the high society of an Ottoman provincial commercial centre on the rise. The memoirs are valuable because they capture an important moment of transition in the history of the Middle East and the West and, as such, constitute a valuable resource for anyone interested of the modern middle east and its relations with Europe’.