Philadelphia Rare Books: The Inca

Philadelphia Rare Books & Manuscripts Company - Early Printed Books, Substantive Manuscripts, U.S. and Latin Americana, Mexico & New World Languages, Hispanica, Histories & the History of Ideas, Travels, Cookery, Law, Religion, & Bibles (All Antiquarian)

THE INCA

First

U.S. Edition, First Issue

Prescott, William H. History of the conquest of Peru, with a preliminary view of the civilization of the Incas. New York: Harper & Bros., 1847. 8vo (24.3 cm, 9.55"). 2 vols. I: Frontis., xl, [1], 527, [1] pp.; 1 map. II: Frontis., xix, [1], 547, [1] pp.; 1 plt.
$300.00

History of the Conquest of Mexico

• BAL 16346; Gardner P-7; Sabin 65272. Publisher’s blind-stamped cloth, spines with gilt-stamped titles; sunned and with small spots of discoloration, spines each showing traces of a now-absent shelving label. Front pastedowns each with private collector’s bookplate, institutional rubber-stamp, and speckled show-through of binder’s glue. Light to moderate foxing throughout.

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Peruvian ConquestIllustrated

Zárate, Agustín de. Histoire de la decouverte et de laconquete du Perou. Traduite de l'Espagnol...par S.D.C. Paris: La compagnie des libraires, 1716. 8vo (17 cm, 6.75"). 2 vols. I: Frontis., [40], 360 pp.; 13 (2 fold.) plts., 1 fold. map. II: [8], 479, [1 (blank)] pp.
$700.00

Click the interior images for enlargements.

• Early French printing of this very successful Peruvian history, which went through numerous editions in languages including Spanish, Italian, Dutch, German, and English. Zárate arrived in Peru as part of the retinue of the first viceroy, and served there from 1543 until 1548. His work was first printed in its original Spanish in 1555, but did not appear in French until 1700; the present translation was done by S. de Broë, Seigneur de Citry et de la Guette. The first volume is illustrated with an oversized folding map and fourteen engraved plates, including the well known depiction of a nattily dressed European gentleman, reclining on a raft-like cushion, borne across a stream by two Indians.

Married set

• Sabin 106261; Palau 379641. Contemporary mottled sheep and calf as above, corners and edges worn, all joints cracking, both volumes with minor worming to front covers and pinholes to spines; vol. I with loss of leather over spine head (half of top compartment). Pencilled check marks scattered throughout; front free endpaper and recto of last text page of vol. II with annotations.

In Paper Wrappers, 1774

Zárate, Agustin de. Histoire de la découverte et de la conquête du Perou, traduite de l’Espagnol d’Augustin de Zarate, par S.D.C. Paris: Par la compagnie des libraires, 1774. 8vo (18 cm, 7.1"). I: Frontis., xl, 360 pp.; 1 fold. map, 10 engr. plts., 2 fold. engr. plts. II: viii, 479, [1 (blank)] pp.
$445.00

Classic and standard work on the discovery, conquest, and subsequent civil war periods

seigneur de Citry et de La Guette

• Sabin 106266; Palau 379645. Volumes bound in paper wrappers, back wrapper lacking in both cases; front wrappers reinforced with printed papers taken from other items. Reverse of frontispiece in vol. I and front pastedown in vol. II with small bookplates of private collector. Edges untrimmed. Scattered spots; pages and plates generally in good clean condition.

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