James Spilman - A Journey through Russia into Persia - 1742

SPILMAN, James
A Journey Through Russia into Persia.
By two English gentlemen, who went in the year 1739 from Petersburg, in order to discover how trade from Great Britain might be carried on from Astracan over the Caspian.
To which is annexed, a summary account of the rise of the famous Koulikan, and his successes, until he seated himself on the Persian throne.
London: printed for R. Dodsley, 1742

First edition

Very rare

James Spilman (1680-1753) began trading in Russia in 1701, becoming one of the leading British merchants in the country and making a significant contribution to the Anglo-Russian trade treaty of 1734.
In 1742, he published this work, which contains an account by John Elton and Mungo Graeme of their 1739 explorations, during which they attempted to find a trans-Caspian trade route from Astrakhan to Persia that the English could utilize.

The work contains numerous observations on Russian and Central Asian history, customs, and trade, at a time when British trade with Russia and knowledge of its interior were rapidly growing.

Cross, In the Lands of the Romanovs, CXI; ESTC T29225.

In octavo (190 x 123 mm).
Marbled boards and gold lettering on the spine.
Signs of wear at the edges of the dishes and on the back.

Page [2]+75
Complete, despite the irregular pagination.
Ornate headbands, internal pages in excellent condition, sporadic stains.
Excellent copy.