A very RARE two-volume set of large hardcover books about explorations in Central Asia titled "Through Asia" by Sven Hedin. These two large hardcover books (7 x 9 ¾ inches, to pages 649 in Volume I and to page 1255 in Volume II) was published by Harper & Brothers of New York dated 1899 and the First American Edition with the same date on title and copyright pages. The books are bound in green cloth with a colorful symbol as decoration on the front cover of each volume and gilt titles on cover and spine. The book is very well illustrated with nearly three hundred illustrations from sketches and photographs by the Author. There are also two fold-out color maps one at the end of each volume. Sven Anders Hedin, (19 February 1865 26 November 1952) was a Swedish geographer, topographer, explorer, photographer, travel writer and illustrator of his own works. During four expeditions to Central Asia, he made the Transhimalya known in the West and located sources of the Brahmaputra, Indus and Sutlej Rivers. He also mapped lake Lop Nur, and the remains of cities, grave sites and the Great Wall of China in the deserts of the Tarim Basin. Book in overall good condition. Inside text and illustrations clean and complete, no foxing. maps in overal good condition with some repair on margins. Untrimmed pages so expect some wear around margins. Externally original cloth with wear around edges and corners and especially on spines reattached by previous owner, binding on volume 1 a bit shaken but all pages attached, in vol 2 very good-see photos as part of description. Ex library books with only signs: numbers and remnants of stickers on spine, remnants of stickers on front pastedown, numbers on a page at beginnning-no other signs. Overall good to very good copies. Scarce set.