Ottoman Empire - BUSBECQ (Ogier Ghislain de).... Lot 50

Ottoman Empire - BUSBECQ (Ogier Ghislain de). A. Gislenii Busbequii omnia quae extant. Lugd. Batavorum (Leiden), Ex officina Elzeviriana, 1633. In-24 of 575 (with the title engraved by C.C. Duysend), [23] pp. Green morocco, smooth spine decorated, title p. in mar. bordeaux, nice gilt frame on the covers, inside lace, gilt tr. (contemporary binding). Small epidermis on top plate, worn leg corners, lined title page. Nice copy. "First collective edition of the letters and pamphlets of the famous diplomat and traveller Auger Ghisselin de Bousbecques. - There are under this date two editions also estimated: the common title of the Letters carries Epistolae in the first [which is the case in our copy] and in the other Epistolae. Louis and Daniel [Elzevier] reproduced this volume line for line in 1660. But this reprint is less attractive and less sought-after than the two Leiden editions." Willems (no. 380). A Flemish diplomat and naturalist from Comines (near Lille), Ogier Ghiselin de Busbecq (1522-1592) entered the service of Charles V and then Ferdinand of Habsburg as ambassador to Sultan Soliman the Magnificent in 1555. In the midst of the conflict between the Holy Roman Germanic Empire and the Ottoman Empire, he obtained a short truce of six months before returning to Vienna. Sent on mission to Constantinople again the following year, he stayed there for nearly seven years, in difficult conditions, often imprisoned, but during which he very skillfully managed to conclude a truce of eight years this time. He left Constantinople towards the end of August 1562, bringing with him plants then unknown in Europe: lilac, tulip and horse chestnut. On his return, he was much appreciated by the Emperor and was appointed governor of the sons of Maximilian II and then grandmaster of the house of Archduchess Elisabeth (daughter of Maximilian II), his wife.