Constantin François de Chassebœuf, Comte de Volney. Voyage en Syrie et en Ëgypte, Pendant Les Années 1783, 1784 et 1785.

(TRAVEL).

Chez Volland

Paris

1789-90

Second edition. Two volumes. Volume I: pp. xvi, 383. Two large fold-out maps, Egypt and Syria. * Volume II: (4), 458, iv. Plan of the Temple of the Sun, Balbe[e]k; fold-out view of the Quaree Court of the Sun Temple; fold-out view of the Ruins of Palmyra in the desert of Syria.

A French philosopher, abolitionist, historian, orientalist, and politician, Constantin-François de Chasseboeuf (1757–1820) adopted the pen name Volney, which combined the name of Voltaire and Ferney, where the great philosopher lived. A friend of Thomas Jefferson and other Enlightenment figures, Volney used an inheritance to further his education by traveling to Ottoman Egypt and the historical regions of Syria, visiting areas of present-day Lebanon and Israel, seeking to gain political and philosophical insights from the ancient heritage of the Near East. Very little had been written in the West about these areas before Volney’s work, first published in 1787. It explores geography, history, ethnic divisions, religious beliefs, commerce, politics and customs, and upon publication enjoyed great popularity.