First Koran in English London, 1649 THE ALCORAN OF MAHOMET, TRANSLATED OUT OF ARABIQUE INTO FRENCH BY THE SIEUR DU RYER, LORD OF ALEZAIR, AND RESIDENT FOR THE KING OF FRANCE, AT ALEXANDRIA. AND NEWLY ENGLISHED, FOR THE SATISFACTION OF ALL THAT DESIRE TO LOOK INTO THE TURKISH VANITIES. Followed by: Ross, Alexander. A NEEDFUL CAVEAT OR ADMONITION FOR THEM WHO DESIRE TO KNOW WHAT USE MAY BE MADE OF, OR IF THERE BE DANGER IN READING THE ALCORAN. First Edition. London, 1649, 24 + 407 + 14 pages, small octavo (5.5 x 7.25 inches). Bound in contemporary calf, rebacked, corners rubbed, otherwise a very good copy. Engraved armorial bookplate of Etta Mary Arnold Clark is pasted down on the inner front cover. The present English translation is the first appearance of the Koran in the English language. It was made directly from the French edition. It also contains, at the end of the book, Ross's pamphlet warning people about reading the Koran. $2500. Contact us to purchase or for information

Koran, First Edition Sale Translation London, C. Ackers, for J. Wilcox, 1734 THE KORAN, COMMONLY CALLED THE ALCORAN OF MOHAMMED, TRANSLATED INTO ENGLISH IMMEDIATELY FROM THE ORIGINAL ARABIC; WITH EXPLANATORY NOTES TAKEN FROM THE MOST APPROVED AUTHORITIES. TO WHICH IS PREFIXED A PRELIMINARY DISCOURCE BY GEORGE SALE. First Edition. London: C. Ackers, FOR J. Wilcox, 1734, [6], iii-ix [x-xii] 1-187 [188 blank], 1-508, [13] [14 blank] pages, quarto (8.25 x 10 inches). 5 plates, 4 of which folding. Title page printed in red and black. Full morocco, rebacked, gold letter stamping on spine, 5 raised bands, edges a little rubbed, otherwise a very good copy. Engraved armorial bookplate of W. Combes is laid down on the inner front cover. The plates include an engraved map of Arabia with an engraved depiction of the haram at Mecca, 3 genealogical tables, and one folding engraved view of the Kaaba at Mecca, with the various parts of the Sanctuary are identified. See British Museum, Arabic, I, 888. The present book is the first edition of this important translation. George Sale (1697-1736) was one of the leading English orient lists of his day. In spite of Voltaire's claim in the Dictionnaire Philosophique that Sale spent "twenty-five years among the Arabs," it is now known that he never left his native country. In any case by 1726 he was proficient enough in Arabic to become one of the expert correctors of the Arabic New Testament. So devoted was he to his studies that Disraeli said of him that he "pursued his studies through a life of want ... and when he quitted his studies, too often wanted a change of linen, and often wandered in the streets in search of some compassionate friend who would supply him with the meal of the day. Sale's translation when it appeared was the only full translation of the Koran in any language aside from a vastly inferior French edition by Du Ryer and an English edition of the same year derived from it. "... his version remains the best in any language.." (Dictionary of National Biography). He was much influenced by Ludovico Maracci's edition in Arabic and Latin printed in Padua in 1698. In this translation, Sale includes a preliminary discourse in which he writes of his admiration of Muslim achievements. Throughout Sale made full use of native commentators for both the interpretation of the text and in the notes. The preface and notes are among the best sources of information on Islam and its peoples. His Preliminary Discourse has been approvingly translated into Arabic. This translation remains the best translation in any language, and a classic of English literature. $2750. Contact us to purchase or for information

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