SONNERAT (Pierre). Voyage aux Indes Orientales et à la Chine - Lot 133

SONNERAT (Pierre). Voyage aux Indes Orientales et à la Chine fait par ordre du Roi, depuis 1774 jusqu'en 1781. A Paris, chez l'auteur, 1782. 2 vols. in-4, [XXIV]-317 + VIII-298 p., brown marbled boards, with full margins (boards rubbed, with lac. on spines, worn edges and corners; sporadic foxing, a few uniformly browned leaves including a few plates in vol. 2, soiling on pl. 1, discreet wetness affecting illustration on pl. 47, small stain on pl. 71 and 103). First edition. Naturalist and traveler Pierre Sonnerat (1745-1814) was called to the Ile de France [Mauritius] by Pierre Poivre, his godfather. In 1771-1772, Poivre sent him to the Moluccas to bring back the precious clove and nutmeg plants that the Dutch had monopolized. He also introduced breadfruit, cocoa and mangosteen to Mauritius and Reunion. After a stay in France, he returned to Ile de France, Pondicherry & Canton in 1777. The following year, he explored southern Madagascar and returned to France to publish his Relation, which develops curious descriptions of Hindu arts, customs, religion, mores and sciences. Amply illustrated with 140 copper-engraved plates by Desmoulins, J.J. Avril, Poisson and others after Sonnerat, including 16 fold-outs. These illustrations include a plan of Pondicherry and its attacks, views, representations of the cultural and religious aspects of India and China, costumes and specimens of the region's flora and fauna. Some copies contain one or two folding maps that appear to be an enrichment, but are not mentioned by Cordier. Copy as issued. (Cordier, Bibl. sinica, 2102).