205 - [Holy Land]. LA ROQUE, Jean de. [ARVIEUX, L., Knight of].

[Holy Land]. LA ROQUE, Jean de. [ARVIEUX, L., Knight of]. Journey to Palestine, to the Grand Emir, Leader of the Arab Princes of the Desert, with a General Description of Arabia by Sultan Ismael Abulfeda, translated into French from the best manuscripts, with notes. Amsterdam: Steenhouwer & Uytwerf, 1718. In-12, (20) leaves, including title page and frontispiece, 342 pp., (3) leaves, title in red and black, 4 plates, one of which is a fold-out. Fine, lightly speckled fawn sheepskin, ribbed spine, decorated panels, marbled edges (binding worn, some pages browned and a few stains). Second edition of this work, produced in Amsterdam based on the original published in Paris by André Cailleau in 1717. The volume brings together two distinct texts: the account of Laurent d’Arvieux’s 17th-century journey to Palestine and a geographical description of Arabia composed by the geographer and historian Abul-Fida (1273–1331), translated into French and annotated by Jean de La Roque. The illustrations consist of five plates drawn and engraved in black on copper by Jan Wandelaar, including a frontispiece title page and a fold-out plate showing the encampment on Mount Carmel facing the city of Haifa. "Numerous details on the customs and traditions and the religion of the Bedouins (...) a mission to Mount Carmel in 1664 with a description of the Red Sea and a lengthy general description of Arabia (...) Of particular interest and value: the description of Mecca is one of the most precise." D’Arvieux, “an intriguer who became a Knight of the Order of Saint Lazarus and French consul; he was one of those men of humble origins whom the government of Louis XIV sent far away on subordinate or secret missions.” Blackmer, 8. Chadenat, 1647.