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FRAYSSE ET ASSOCIES

340 - MENDOZA (Juan Gonzalez de). History of the great Kingdom of …
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Estimate €3,000 - €5,000
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Description
MENDOZA (Juan Gonzalez de). History of the great Kingdom of China situated in the East Indies divided into two parts. Containing in the first the situation, antiquity, fertility, religion, ceremonies, sacrifices, kings, magistrates, customs, laws, and other memorable things of the said Kingdom; the Second, three journeys made towards it in the year 1577. 1579. & 1581. avec les singularitez plus remarquables y veuës & entenduës : ensemble vn Itineraire du nouveau monde, & le descourement du nouveau Mexique en l'an 1583. Done in Spanish & mise en françois avec des additions en marge, & deux Indices, Par Lvc de la Porte, Parisien, docteur ès Droits. Edition française. Paris, Adrian Périer, 1600, in 16 (16x11), in its original vellum binding, 12 fnc- 309 numbered leaves or about 618 pages (there are some pagination errors-24 fnc for the index). The first history of China published in the West after Marco Polo. The translation is by Luc de La Porte. The first French edition appeared in 1588, based on the Spanish original of 1585; one of the best accounts of missionaries in China in the 16th century; it contains an important section on America, in particular the recent discovery of New Mexico by Antonio d'Espejo in 1583. It was thanks to this work that Abraham Ortelius was able to compile the American section of his atlas. Cordier, Sinica, 12; Sabin 27780; Leclerc (1878) 258. Father Juan Gonzalez de Mendoza (or Mendoça), an Augustinian friar born in Toledo around 1540, died in Mexico in 1617. He belonged to one of the noblest and wealthiest families in Castile. In 1580, Philip II sent him to China to gather detailed information on customs, politics, natural resources, climate, trade, means of transport, etc. Father Mendoza spent three years in China. Rare edition according to Chadenat. Our edition was published by Périer like the original French edition. Original binding has suffered, small worm gallery at the top of leaves 197 to 217, browning.
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About the sale BOOKS & MANUSCRIPTS - FROM THE LIBRARY C. MAISONNEUVE
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Auction time 06/04/2026 at 2:15 PM
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