the finest illustrated book on Afghanistan

Rattray's is the finest illustrated book on Afghanistan, of great value for showing us the ways of life and customs of the country. 'Rattray travelled to Afghanistan in 1841 and participated in the latter half of the First Anglo-Afghan War. The artist dedicated this collection to the Candahar Force that he belonged to and the British and Indian officers who participated in this war. In many cases, the artist's commentary, rather than being an explanation of the pictures themselves, is an explanation about the harrowing experiences of British troops in Afghanistan, which the artist faced by himself or heard from others.

Characteristic features of Rattray's works are his detailed and vivid depictions of the people living in Afghanistan. In both his works and commentary, he takes great care in depicting clothing. Rattray's work also provides us with a wide range of information that is of historical and ethno-historical interest, such as the forms of worship at tombs and mosques, and the imperial rituals of the Dorranis. Even though Rattray was a soldier, he had a good command of Persian and spoke directly with local people; more than anything, he had a tireless interest in any information related to Afghanistan.' (Rendering Afghanistan, Tokyo University).

First edition; folio (61 x 43.5 cm), title printed in red and black, additional hand-coloured lithograph title page, dedication leaf, 29 finely hand-coloured lithographs on 25 leaves by Robert Carrick and others after Rattray, many heightened with gum arabic, each lithograph with descriptive letterpress, lithograph title spotted, occasional spotting elsewhere, fore-margin text leaf Interior of Candahar repaired, occasional short tears not affecting images, list of subscribers, contemporary red half morocco, red morocco title label to upper cover, a little rubbed and worn, a good copy.

Abbey Travel 513; Bobins 267; Colas 2489; Lipperheide 1497.