BEAUTIFUL FIRST EDITION BY THE EXPLORER & JESUIT PHILIPPE AVRIL (1654-1698) about a 5-year journey to Asia, East Europe, Turkish Empire, China, Persia, Kazakhstan, Siberia, Mongolia and Russia made between 1685-1690. This first octavo edition printed in Paris is richly illustrated with several full page engravings and an illustrated frontispiece. The mission was to establish a safe route by land to the Far East and China, since getting there by sea was too long and dangerous, 500 missionaries died on the way out of the 600 sent. The work is dedicated to the Polish prince Stanisław Jan Jabłonowski (1634-1702), the grandfather of Stanislas Leszczynski (1677-1766), King of Poland (1704-1709), Duke of Lorraine (1737-1766) and the great-grandfather of Marie Leszczynska, Queen of France. The pages are in very good condition, the binding is antique and in good condition, the illustrations are intact with the original margins and drawn with great skill by the best French illustrators of the time. Beautiful illustrated first octavo edition. The extraordinary journey provides one of the first descriptions of the unknown lands of the Far East and people, their customs, life style, and means of transport with reindeer, dogs, dromedaries etc... King Louis XIV sought to open a land route to China, for this purpose he sent various Jesuits, "mathematicians of the king", on a diplomatic mission to the emperor of China. In January of 1685, PHILIPPE AVRIL left Marseille with instructions given by the astronomer Jean-Dominique Cassini (1625-1712) and arrived in Syria. He crossed Asia Minor and joined another Jesuit, Louis Barnabé, in Erzurum (Turkey). Together they explore the Caspian Sea region where AVRIL measures the dimensions and astronomically determines the position of Astrakhan city (Russia). Going up the Volga river, they arrived in Moscow in January 1687. However, the Russians considering this trip to Beijing as Western interference in the border negotiations between their two nations and did not grant them transit visas. Barnabas returns to France to ask the king for help, and Avril goes to Warsaw (Poland) to request the intervention of John III Sobieski. Returning to Moscow, AVRIL meets Antoine Beauvollier, Barnabé's traveling companion, who arrived alone in Moscow because the latter drowned in the Baltic Sea. The Russian king was adamant that he could not guarantee them his protection (February 2, 1689). In the spring of 1689, the two travelers were in Istanbul (Turkey). Father AVRIL, ill, returned to France the following year. It was then that he published this book "Journey to Various States of Europe and Asia undertaken to discover a new path to China". However, he did not give up his attempt to reach China by land. When the opportunity arises, he accompanies Guy Tachard to southern Asia. Arriving in Goa (Portuguese India) in 1696, he remained stuck there for two years. He finally manages to board a ship leaving Surat for the Far East, but the ship, surprised by a storm, was shipwrecked off Formosa. Russia was unwilling to allow passage through its territory because intended to keep her trade with China a secret. AVRIL's numerous writings on his travels in Russia and the Middle East provided Europe with descriptions of previously unknown lands. Description: in 8vo size H 165 x W 102 mm or 6.5 by 4.2 inches. [14] sheets including frontispiece + 342 pages and [1] sheet for royal privilege. Period speckled tan calfskin, spine with 5 raised bands, matching title label, decorated boxes, red edges, restorations, traces of wear on the edges, corners and dishes, but solid and functioning binding. Title slightly yellowed, with mention of the author's name in pen, rare clear angular wet spots, some dirt on the margins. Second edition and the first of this format, commissioned by Louis XIV in search of a new land route to China. It is better illustrated than the 4to edition and presents a frontispiece title and 8 plates, all engraved on copper. All illustrations are well engraved with intact margins, with great contrast and definition. Title: "Voyage en divers Etats d'Europe et d'Asie, entrepris pour découvrir un nouveau chemin à la Chine. Contenant plusieurs remarques curieuses de physique, de géographie, d’hydrographie et d’histoire. Avec une Description de la grande Tartarie, & des différens peuples qui l’habitent..." (Travel to various states of Europe and Asia, undertaken to discover a new path to China. Containing several curious remarks on physics, geography, hydrography and history. With a Description of Great Tartary, & the different peoples who inhabit it...). Published in Paris, by J. Boudot, December 1692. References: Cordier BS 2088 (4to edition); Cf Walravens (1987) 55 (4to edition); Henri Cordier, Bibliotheca Sinica Dictionnaire Bibliographique des ouvrages relatifs a l’Empire chinois, t. III, 2088; De Backer, Augustin & Carlos S.J. Sommervogel, Bibliotheque de la Compagnie de Jesus. Bibliographie, tome I, p.706; Glenn Joseph Ames, Ronald S. Love, Distant Lands and Diverse Cultures: The French Experience in Asia, 1600-1700. Praeger, 2003 – pp. 202, 219; Howgego A142; Salmaslian, Armenag, Bibliographie de l’Armenie, (1946), p. 238; Joseph Sebes, Jesuit attempts to establish an overland route to China, dans The Canada-Mongolia Review, Vol.5 (1979), p. 51-67. Author: Philippe Avril (1654-1698), was a French Jesuit priest, missionary and explorer. The book "Journey to various states of Europe and Asia undertaken to discover a new path to China" is a travelogue made between 1685 and 1690 in the Ottoman Empire, Asia, China and the Russian Empire, written by Philippe Avril, a Jesuit at the search for a land route to China, and the Jesuit mission in China, and published in Paris in 1692. Shipping: via UPS, protected, INSURED and fully tracked package. Estimated time for Europe 3-5 working days. Shipping within one working day. You can combine shipping if you purchases several items from us, saving money and time.