A. Favier - Péking - 1897

PUBLISHED IN BEIJING 1897: THE IMPERIAL CITY IN 808 ILLUSTRATIONS, WIDE MARGINS AND UNTOUCHED LEAVES
FIRST EDITION - An extraordinary illustrated testimony of Imperial Peking at the end of the nineteenth century. Published in the same Chinese capital in 1897, this monumental work by Alphonse Favier gathers history, architecture, religion, art, and daily life. An exceptional iconographic apparatus includes 660 engravings, 124 phototypes, and 24 collotypes beyond the text. A numbered copy 495, preserved in its original binding, with wide margins and numerous leaves still untouched.
ABSTRACT
First edition of Péking. Histoire et Description, published in Beijing in 1897 by Imprimerie des Lazaristes au Pé-T'ang. One of the great illustrated works devoted to the Chinese capital in the nineteenth century, written by the French missionary Alphonse Favier, a direct witness to the political, religious, and urban transformations of the city. The volume presents a reconstruction of Chinese history from its origins to the Qing era and a broad description of contemporary Peking, the imperial palaces, temples, fortifications, ceremonies, and customs. Particularly notable is the wealth of illustrations created or reproduced by Chinese artists.
WHY TO BUY
First original edition printed in Beijing in 1897.
808 illustrations declared, among engravings, phototypes, and collotypes.
Numbered copy 495, with wide margins and numerous untouched leaves.
Original publisher’s binding and testimony to missionary typography in China.

MARKET VALUE
Indicative commercial value: €1,200–2,000. The first edition, preserved in the original binding, with generous margins and untouched leaves, are elements of particular collectible interest.

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION AND CONDITION
Beijing, Imprimerie des Lazaristes au Pé-T'ang, 1897. Original publisher’s binding with illustrated cover printed in red and black, protected by a brown paper wrapper. Collation: XII, [4], 336, [4], 337–562 [recte 552], [1] pages. Total: 569 actual pages in addition to the plates printed beyond the text. The work contains 660 engravings, 124 phototypes and 24 collotypes beyond the text. Copy no. 495. Wide margins, with numerous leaves still untouched, unopened by a page cutter, a particularly appreciated feature in a work of this nature.

FULL TITLE AND AUTHOR
Alphonse Favier. Péking. Histoire et Description. 660 gravures anciennes et nouvelles reproduites ou exécutées par des artistes indigènes d'après les plus précieux documents; 124 phototypies, 24 collographies hors texte. Péking, Imprimerie des Lazaristes au Pé-T'ang, 1897.

CONTEXT AND SIGNIFICANCE
At the end of the nineteenth century Beijing still preserved much of its imperial structure, with the Forbidden City, monumental walls, traditional quarters, temples, and ceremonial complexes of the Qing dynasty. Favier describes this world a few years before the Boxer Uprising of 1900, which would deeply mark foreign and missionary presence in the capital. His book constitutes a precious record of the city before the major transformations of the twentieth century. The first part retraces the dynasties, Mongol invasions, relations with the West, and the history of Christianity in China. The second examines urban topography, buildings, institutions, arts, transportation, and social life. The engravings depict emperors, dignitaries, soldiers, architectures, instruments, ceramics, and everyday scenes, while the photographic plates document buildings and historic places.

BRIEF BIOGRAPHY
Alphonse Favier (1837–1905) was a French Lazarist missionary who arrived in China in 1862. A prominent figure in Beijing’s Catholic community, he played a key role in the construction of the new Pé-T’ang Cathedral, completed in 1887. He later became the Vicar Apostolic of Beijing and was a central figure in defending the missionary complex during the Boxer Siege of 1900. His long stay in China allowed him to gather observations, testimonies, and historical documentation that form the basis of his work.

PRINTING HISTORY
First edition, printed directly in Beijing in 1897 at the Imprimerie des Lazaristes au Pé-T'ang, one of the major missionary presses operating in late Qing China. The publication testifies to the meeting of European editorial techniques and Chinese artistic production. The title page, printed in red and black, announces a richly illustrative apparatus. The colophon is particularly significant, recording the start of printing on 25 January 1896 and completion on 7 November 1896, though the volume bears the editorial date of 1897. The original cover features an elaborate oriental-style drawing with Chinese characters and a red title.

RARITY
Copy of the first original edition, numbered 495 and preserved in the publisher’s binding, a state of interest for a large-format illustrated volume. The presence of numerous untouched leaves and wide margins adds further bibliographic charm. The work is especially sought after in the field of collecting related to Imperial China, historic Asian photography, travel, and the history of Catholic missions.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Cordier, Bibliotheca Sinica, II, coll. 218–219, reference to be verified for the exact edition; bibliographic catalogues of works on China and French missionary literature.

WHY WE CHOSE THIS BOOK
We chose this copy for its extraordinary documentary and iconographic wealth, for the historical importance of its publication directly in Beijing, and for the preservation of its original editorial format. The numerous untouched leaves, the wide margins, and the individual numbering enhance its collectible character. A work capable of conveying, through hundreds of images, the face of an imperial capital on the eve of epochal change.
Old books may present imperfections, stains, foxing, irregularities, and signs of use compatible with age and traditional production methods.
This listing includes AI Visualizations for illustration purposes. Please refer to the original photographs to verify the actual condition of the object. The images are an integral part of the description.