1976 Richard Burton - CATALOGUE OF VALUABLE BOOKS

Title: Catalogue Of Valuable Books, Manuscripts & Autograph Letters Of Sir Richard Francis Burton, 1821-1890.

London: Spink and Sons, 1976. First Edition. Very Good Condition. Bound in grey paper covers, as issued, with cream label. Including illustrations and descriptions.

Many of the books are recorded and photographed for the first time, in this significant collection of Burton Material. This is a fantastic item for the serious Burton collector - A Rare Primary Resource and Reference Work.

From the Preface: Today Sir Richard F. Burton is primarily remembered for his major translation of 'The Arabian Nights' Entertainment,' first published in 1885. Apart from being a translator of the first order, he was an explorer, soldier, linguist, writer, anthropologist and diplomat. Throughout his life he remained as he once described himself, 'A blaze of light without a focus.' During his lifetime he mastered twenty-nine languages and wrote forty-three volumes relating to his travels, many of which were and indeed still remain recognized classics and pioneer works.

The Collection of Books and Manuscripts here catalogued includes copies of all of Burton's works with the exception of 'A Complete System Of Bayonet Exercise' 1853, 'Stone Talk' 1865, and 'The Gulistan' 1888, each of which is now of considerable rarity. A feature of the Collection is that the majority of the volumes are in the original cloth; a substantial number of them being recorded as binding variants neither seen nor noted by Burton's bibliographer - Norman M. Penzer. Mention should be made of 'First Footsteps In East Africa' 1856, including the very rare 'Appendix IV'; two copies of 'The Guide Book. A Pictorial Pilgrimage To Mecca & Medina' 1865, one of which is in mint condition; 'A New System Of Sword Exercise For Infantry' 1876 with Burton's card attached; The exceedingly rare first issue of 'The Kasidah' 1880; and of equal rarity, the original seven parts of the first issue of 'The Kama Sutra Of Vatsyayana' 1883. More important are the seventeen autograph manuscripts included in the Collection, no less than nine of which remain, until now, either unrecorded or unpublished.

Hitherto unknown is a lengthy report on Sayid Barghash of Zanzibar, and the trade potential of that island 1877; autograph manuscripts of two projected works: 'Greek Proverbs' c.1875, and 'The Dying Language Of Veglia Island,' are examples of Burton's study of languages. Two folio pages of the original autograph manuscript of 'Two Trips To Gorilla Land' 1876, show Burton's method of preparing his original draft with additions and corrections covering every available space on the paper.

The Collection also contains autograph letters of both Sir Richard and Lady Isabel Burton with letters to them being from major public figures of the day, including General Gordon (of Khartoum). One section of the Catalogue includes a substantial number of contemporary off-prints and reprints of articles by Burton, and periodicals in which his work originally appeared, some of which being unrecorded by Penzer. There is also a series of original pen and ink sketches by Burton, used to illustrate 'Two Trips To Gorilla Land' 1876, and a fine original and contemporary portrait in oils of Burton after that by Lord Leighton, now in the National Portarit Gallery, London.