Search Results: Authors starting with B from Asher Rare Books

[8], 189[=205], [1 blank] pp.First edition of a famous work on optics by the English natural philosopher and mathematician Roger Bacon (ca. 1220-ca. 1292). Bacon was well read in Arabic and ancient Greek sources on optics and perspective, a subject hardly studied in Europe during the earlier Middle Ages. The main sources for his theories were the writings of Euclid, Ptolemy and Alhazen (Ibn al-Haytham), and he followed Robert Grosseteste concerning the importance of light and in his emphasis on the use of lenses, not only for burning, but also for magnification to aid natural vision. Bacon advised magnifying glasses for old people as well as for people with weak eyes. The Perspectiva belonged to Bacon's Opus maius, compiled in manuscript in 1266-1267. The present edition was based on a medieval manuscript and was edited by Johann Combach (1585-1651), professor of philosophy at Marburg in GermanyWith a stain on the title-page and two on the last blank, probably from removing old stamps, browned… Read More

[6], XXXIX, [11], 854, [2] pp.New quarto edition of the complete works of the famous Italian physician, Giorgio Baglivi (1668-1707). Contains in particular his dissertation illustrated with a plate on "The anatomy, the bite and the effects of the tarantula", published in 1696. Baglivi studied the anatomy of the tarantula, its habitat, the nature of its poison and the effects it had on humans and other animals. He took the analysis of these elements as an opportunity to describe the region where most cases of tarantula bites were recorded, Puglia, and the benefits of the - apparently - most effective therapy to cure these bites: music.Giorgio Baglivi, born in Ragusa and died in Rome, was the doctor of Popes Innocent XII and Clement XI. The latter appointed him a position as the professor of surgery and anatomy at the College of Sapience in Rome. He formulated a doctrine which rehabilitated the role of the solid parts of the human body (of their contractile properties and of the vital forces which… Read More

36, 496, [16] pp.Third edition of the expanded Dutch translation of Henry Baker's 1742 The Microscope Made Easy, well illustrated and with a nearly hundred-page appendix new to this edition. The first part of the book describes microscopes, including the lenses Antonie van Leeuwenhoek used, and techniques for studying microscopic objects. The second part describes discoveries made with the microscope, covering animals, plants, minerals, the human body, etc. The new appendix contains descriptions of new microscopes, some remarks on their use, and additional comments on the "little animals" that Van Leeuwenhoek had seen in human blood. Several authors contributed to part 3, including Baker, Adams, Di Torre and Lieberkuhn. The 28 engraved plates (half in the new appendix) show different kinds of microscopes as well as microscopic views of objects and materials.Some waterstains throughout the book, but otherwise in very good condition. Binding slightly damaged at the hinges, but otherwise very good.… Read More

90 pp.Two interesting dissertations by Ambrogio Balbi on the Venere Ericina (Venus of Eryx), a cult of Venus originating on Sicily. The second was published before in 1807, but the first appears here for the first time. The opening dissertation describes the Sicilian origins of the cult, the second one deals with an inscribed memorial stone originating from the Sicilian sanctuary at Monte Erice.From the collection of Joachim Gomez de la Cortina, Marqués de Morante (1808-1868), a Spanish senator and rector of the University of Madrid, one of the leading bibliophiles of his day. His library was sold at Paris in 1872. Some spots on the first few leaves and the spine slightly rubbed, but otherwise in very good condition.l Cat. de la bibl. de feu M. le marquis de Morante III (1872), 3588 (this copy); ICCU 002765 (3 copies); WorldCat (7 copies).

[40], “607” [= 623], [1 blank], [16] pp.Rare first edition, in the original Latin, of a mediaeval chronicle of Cambrai and Arras, written ca. 1100 and containing the earliest known description and representation of a "virtuous" dice and board game invented ca. 965 by Wibold, Archdeacon of Noyon, named Bishop of Cambrai shortly before his death, along with a simplified version where the virtue is chosen by a spinning pointer instead of dice. Wibold's game, called "Ludus regularis seu clericalis", is described in detail in a 12-page chapter (pp. 142-153) of the chronicle itself, with extensive notes in a 13-page commentary (pp. 460-472) where the three folding game boards are also inserted. The two rectangular boards are very similar, with rectangular spaces representing 56 virtues arranged along the edges of the rectangle. The goal is to acquire as many virtues as possible. Some virtues are easier to obtain than others. The Mediaeval church often regarded dice games as tools of the devil, and Wibold… Read More

[3], [1 blank]; [2]; [2]; [2] ll.Contemporary copies of four "secret" letters written by Robert Goes, the Dutch Republic's resident in Copenhagen, presumably addressed to the registrars (griffiers) of the States General. As resident, Robert Goes (ca. 1660-1723), Lord of Broekhorst, was charged with the trade negotiations for the States General at the court of Denmark.The four letters by Goes report and discuss current affairs and trade information, particularly concerning the Baltic Sea trade and relations between Denmark and the Dutch Republic. In addition to such administrative matters, he discusses piracy, as in the last letter of 9 December 1690. In this letter he reports that a Copenhagen merchant has filed a complaint about an act of piracy by the Dutch against one of his ships, because such acts of piracy hinder the efforts to let Dutch and Danish ships carry out trade in peace with one another. Altogether these letters provide a detailed insight into various aspects of the Baltic Sea trade and… Read More

[16], 250, [6] pp.Johann Conrad Barchusen (1666-1723) was a pharmacologist, chemist, physician. At the University of Utrecht, he was the first person to teach chemistry as a specific subject (not just as part of medicine). He published four textbooks on chemistry and two on medicine. The Pharmacopoeus synopticus is the first, published in 1690 in Frankfurt. Our copy belongs to the second, revised edition, published in Utrecht; the third appeared in Leiden (T. Haak, 1712).In 1694, the city council of Utrecht granted Barchusen the right to teach private chemistry courses which could be attended by students of the university. His courses were so successful that the magistrate in 1695 financed construction of a chemical laboratory in the bastion of what was then the fortress of Sonnenborgh. In 1698, Barchusen was appointed to the position of lecturer. On 3 October 1698, the University Senate agreed to award him a Doctor of Medicine and in 1703 he was appointed extraordinary professor of chemistry, the… Read More

(16), 680 pp.Completely revised edition of a collection of 26 texts on the history of medical and chemical theories by an expert on medicine and chemistry, Johann Conrad Barchusen (1666-1723). Between the examined authors are Paracelsus, Crollius, Van Helmont, Fludd, Campanella, etc. Pp. 333-63 are devoted to Chinese medicine, or acapuncture. Barchusen studied pharmacy at several universities, including the universities of Berlin, Mainz and Vienna. He settled in Utrecht in 1694, and after being awarded an honorary M.D. by the city in 1698, he was appointed extraordinary professor of chemistry in 1703.Barchusen's work shows his development from a practicing pharmacist to a professor of the new academic discipline of chemistry. His first book Pharmacopoeus synopticus, published in 1690, was a pharmaceutical work. After his arrival in Utrecht, he published a further three works on chemistry. Although Barchusen was not a chemist of genius, his activities much contributed to the high level of the Dutch… Read More

48 pp.Second edition, in the original Italian, of the earliest treatise - and only early monograph - on the historical precursor of the modern game of European football (American soccer), namely the game of "calcio" traditionally played by young men in Florence's Piazza Santa Croce during the Carnival season, first published in 1580. The book explains the mechanics of the game, provides its historical background, and describes actual games played in and around Florence shortly before 1580. The present 1615 second edition is almost unchanged, but has a new dedication by the printer, Cosimo Giunti (and so, a different Medici coat of arms on the title-page), which also reveals the author's name: Giovanni de' Bardi, Conte di Vernio, anonymous in the first edition. It’s curious that both editions are dedicated to and show the arms of the Grand Duchess rather than the Grand Duke (what would they have thought of Megan Rapinoe!?).The engraving gives an excellent view of the Piazza Santa Croce showing the… Read More

VIII, 32; [2], 40; IV, 41, [1 blank]; [2], 22 pp.First and only Dutch translation of the Costume des anciens peuples by Michel-François Dandré Bardon (1700-1783). The 345 plates (instead of the 356 erroneously announced on the title page), preceded in each part by the descriptions, illustrate the costumes and the customs of the ancient peoples in the field of their religions, everyday life and the military. Parts 1 and 2 contain the plates illustrating the Greek and Roman civilisation, part 3 the Israelites and the Egyptians and part 4 the Persians, Scythians, Amazons etc. Bardon gave a large part of his life to the study of ancient history and he liked to illustrate the subjects of his study with his own hand. Some of his drawing are still in the Louvre Museum and some of his paintings are in the Museum in Marseille. Some water stains to the last few plates of both volumes, bindings slightly rubbed and a large blemish to the front board of the first volume. A good copy, untrimmed.l Colas 792;… Read More

[4], CLIX, [1] ll.First edition of a famous biography of the national hero of Albania, Georg Kastriota or Castriota, known as Skanderbeg (1405-1468), by the only Albanian historian before the nineteenth century, Marin Barleti or Marinus Barletius (Shkodra ca. 1450 - Rome 1512), an historian, author and priest from Skhodra. Skanderbeg became a national hero in Albania as the national leader in the struggle with and wars against the Ottoman Empire, fighting for Albanian independence. The book’s Latin title refers to the region using the name of the ancient kingdom Epirus in what is now south Albania.Skanderbeg was born into an Albanian noble family, but as a young boy in 1415 and again as a young man in 1423 he was sent as a hostage to the Ottoman Sultans, Murad I and II respectively, in Constantinople, where he converted to Islam and took the name Iskender (Skanderbeg is derived from that name). In the 1440's Murad II sent Skanderbeg with the Ottoman army to his native Albania. Once there, he left the… Read More

44 [lacking 15-16, 41-44]; 52 [lacking 41-48] pp.Very rare 1662 edition (first issue), in the original Dutch, of an important and influential interpretation of the stories of the Old and New Testament, in the popular form of (originally) 119 engraved illustrations by Pieter van der Borcht (1535-1608), from Mechelen, and explanatory text by the anti-denominational Dutch mystic Hendrik Jansen (van) Barrefelt, also known as "Hiël" (ca. 1530-1594?). Barrefelt initiated two series of engravings for pictorial Bibles around 1582, believing that the contemplation of the biblical images would speak to a wide audience and bring them closer to God, though he also believed that other pictorial Bibles distorted the Bible's meaning. He enlisted Van der Borcht to produce two sets of etched and engraved illustrations of Bible stories and wrote brief commentaries to help people understand the images. Hamilton convincingly argues that the present series B was designed to appeal more to Protestants and the other series… Read More

[4], 132 pp.A valuable panorama of Christian communities throughout the Indian subcontinent in the middle of the 17th century, written by the Portuguese Jesuit missionary to India, Francisco Barreto. His accounts are based on his own experiences in Malabar, the core region of Portuguese Jesuit missionary activities. The work contains detailed accounts of Jesuit activities in the area and Barreto provides painstakingly detailed accounts of the history of the various missions across the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent. Barreto (1598-1663) was born in Montemornovo (Evora), Portugal. In 1624 he went to India, where he taught philosophy and theology, governed the colleges of Coulam and Cochin, was provincial and visitor of the mission of Malabar, India and the province of Goa. In the period from 1644 to 1653 he returned to Rome to report on the mission. He was elected bishop of Cochin and archbishop of Cranganor, which he did not accept.The binding has been restored, the title-page and leaf A1… Read More

VIII, 288; VI, 334; VI, 341, [1] pp.First Dutch edition of Barrow's Travels in China. The author was George Staunton's private secretary and part of Macartney's mission to China (1792-1794). Barrow's narrative "contains a number of descriptions of Chinese artefacts and novelties as well as some first-hand information not found in Staunton" (Hanotiau). The account opens with an essay on China's treatment of foreign travellers and includes a noteworthy description of Beijing and the Imperial Palace, as well as observations on China's history, manners and customs. Among the illustrations are 6 fine views and portraits after William Alexander; other plates show musical instruments and artillery. Engravings in the text show additional music and there is a woodcut of a Chinese character. With an owners’ inscriptions and bookplate . With a water stain in the first few leaves of vol. 1, but further in very good condition and wholly untrimmed. The paper spines are lost or damaged, but the bindings are… Read More

16; 20; 20; 12; 16 pp.First editions of five brief treatises by the Danish physician Thomas Bartholin (1616-1680), concerning visits and regulations to secure and maintain proper healthcare in Copenhagen. It deals with inspections and visits to physicians, apothecaries, quacks, and practitioners without a license, making sure everyone meets the same standards of hygiene, has the proper medicines in stock and charges reasonable prices for their services. A sixth part appeared in 1678, not included here.Some minor spots and a small marginal water stain in the last few leaves. Wrappers slightly rubbed. Overall in good condition.l Bibl. Osleriana 1947; Krivatsy 823-826; not in Wellcome.

LXII, 272; XXXII, 224, 144 pp.First edition of the first educational work by the well-known German pedagogue and reformer Johann Bernhard Basedow (1724-1790). In his extensive preface to both parts Basedow lists the errors of the old forms of education and exposes his own views on perfect education, gradually expanding step for step from the understanding of the human condition and the system of nature to a full and free understanding of duty, morals and the truth of Christian religion. At the end of the second work Basedow added his own catechism in questions and answers, entitled Grundriss der Religion, welche durch Nachdenken und Bibelforschen erkannt wird, in Fragen und Antworten, nebst einige Zusätzen. Further added are daily prayers and reflections on God and his creation. Basedow applied all his ideas on enlightened religion to religious education of children. He wanted religion to be truly understood and freely accepted as the ultimate truth, to which end he found the traditional religious… Read More

[1], [1 blank], [44], 1-156, 185-368, 371-544, 543-554, 554*1-554*24, 555-658; [1], [1 blank], [4], 659-760, 1103-1288, 1288†-1288††††, 1289-1390, 1471-1584, 1591-1710, 1725-1844, 1879-1940 pp.The most complete edition of Basnage’s unprecedented, comprehensive synthesis of Jewish history and experience from the first century AD to his own times, unquestionably representing an historic milestone.Jacques Christian Basnage de Beauval (1653-1723) was a Protestant divine and historian. After the revocation of the Edict of Nantes he accepted a call as pastor to Rotterdam (1686) and later to The Hague (1691). He wrote several books, the most famous being L'histoire et la réligion des Juifs depuis Jésus Christ jusqu'á present (6 vols., 1706-1711) which was praised by Voltaire. The book was intended to supplement and continue the famous history of Flavius Josephus, the Jewish historian and soldier who was made commander of Galilee during the Jewish revolt against the Romans in 66-70 AD. After the war,… Read More

[12], 130, 12, [2], 16 pp.The first edition of the famous and influential Pharmacopoeia Bateana a nationally as well as internationally authoritative pharmacology consisting of the medical recipes and prescriptions collected by the British physician George Bate (1608-1668). Bate had been personal physician to Charles I, Oliver Cromwell and Charles II, had been one of the founding Fellows of the Royal Society and had published several medical and political articles and books including two volumes of Elenchus Motuum Nuperorum in Anglia. He had been so highly regarded that his papers were collected and published 19 years after his death by James Shipton as Bate’s Dispensatory (title of the English translation, published in the same year). The book, generally known as the Pharmacopoeia Bateana lived to see many editions in Latin, as well as in English and Dutch and was used as a book of reference until the end of the 18th century. It contains recipe's, their names, compositions, preparations, virtues,… Read More

(8), 310 pp.First and only edition of the translation into Portuguese of the famous Pharmacopoeia Bateana by D. Caetano de Santa Antonio, the author of the first Portuguese Pharmacology, the Pharmacopeia Lusitana (1704, 17112), used in teaching pharmacy to practitioners until far into the 19th century.The Pharmacopoeia Bateana is a nationally as well as internationally authoritative pharmacology consisting of the medical recipes and prescriptions collected by the British physician George Bate (1608-1668), originally published in Latin in 1688. It contains recipe's, their names, compositions, preparations, virtues, uses, and doses, as they are applicable to the whole practice of physick and chirurgery.Marginal staining in the first leaves and wormhole in some leaves. slightly affecting the text.l Schelenz 498; Waller 769; Wellcome II, 113; Not in Lesky and Osler.

[8], 240 pp.The first true Amsterdam edition (calling itself the fourth Latin edition, but apparently ignoring the 1702 Frankfurt and 1703 Venice editions) of the famous Pharmacopoeia Bateana, an internationally authoritative collection of pharmacological recipes and prescriptions compiled posthumously by James Shipton from the papers of the British physician George Bate (1608-1668/69), first published at London in 1688. The first edition was also reissued with a 1688 Amsterdam imprint. The 1691 edition first added the “Arcana Goddardiana” with recipes by Jonathan Goddard (1607-1675). The Wetsteins published further editions that they called the fifth (1719) and sixth (1731).With marginal annotations. Head of the spine soiled, wormholes at the foot of the gutter margin of the first 35 pages and in the head margin on pp. 165-208, not affecting the text. Still in good condition.l STCN (3 copies); WorldCat (8 copies).