Author: Avril, Father.
Title: TRAVELS INTO DIVERS PARTS OF EUROPE AND ASIA, undertaken by the French King’s order to discover a new way by land into China. Containing many curious remarks in natural philosophy, geography, hydrography, and history. Together with a description of Great Tartary, and of the different people who inhabit there. By Father Avril, of the Order of the Jesuits. Done out of French. To which is added, A supplement extracted from Hakluyt and Purchas; giving an account of several journeys over land from Russia, Persia, and the Moguls country to China. Together with the roads and distances of the places. Imprimatur. April 4. 1693. Char. Heron.
Description: London : printed for Tim. Goodwin, at the Maidenhead over-against St. Dunstan’s-Church in Fleetstreet,, 1693. 1st English Ed. 12mo. [10], 191, [1]; 178. [Lacking [A2] ‘Translator to the Reader’ and advert. leaf to rear]. Red and black lettered title page (heavily annotated, also to head of first leaf of text). Some browning, rebound in modern speckled calf, gilt ruling and lettering to spine. ¶ ESTC R16481 ‘A translation of: Avril, Philippe. Voyage en divers états d’Europe et d’Asie. Title page in red and black. Travels in Muscovy. Book the fourth (caption title) has separate pagination and register. With a final advertisement leaf [lacking in our copy]. Wing (2nd ed.), A4275.’ These travels for discovering a new overland route to China were undertaken at the suggestion of Father Ferdinand Verbiest, the celebrated Jesuit Missionary to China, as a safer and quicker route than that by sea, and were made more feasible owing to the Tartar Conquest of China. Father Avril traveled for six years through Kurdistan, Armenia, Astrakhan, Persia, and other countries of eastern Asia. Avril was determined to try the route through Tartary, but on arrival at Moscow permission to travel through Russia was refused, and he went onto Constantinople where bad health caused him to return to France. He re-embarked from France in 1698 but suffered shipwreck and was drowned. First published in France in 1692, with four plates and a folding map.

Keywords: VOYAGES AND TRAVEL; GENERAL VOYAGES


See more books from our catalog: VOYAGES AND TRAVEL: GENERAL VOYAGES