The Ottoman Mission to France, 1720

Sefaretname-i Mehmed Effendi [Sefāret-nāme-i Fransa].

[Constantinople (Istanbul): Matbaa-i İlmiyye-i Osmaniyye, A.H. 1283 = 1866 C.E.].

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About the item

First edition. 83, [1] pp. 1 vols. 8vo. Black cloth and boards. Ownership stamps of Mehmet Salih. Minor rubbing, very good plus. OCLC records two locations (Hamburg and Munich).

Item #371201

The Sefâretnâme of Mehmed Efendi Yirmisekiz Çelebi (1670 - 1731) is a primary document in the history of Ottoman relations with western Europe. A statesman and diplomat, Mehmed Efendi, rose through the ranks of the Janissary corps to hold a post as director of the mint and then to take part in the negotiations leading to the Treaty of Passarowitz in 1717. Sultan Ahmed III named him Ambassador to France, and his account of his travels and observations of the court of Louis XV from 1720 onward, is the first Ottoman record of Euopean customs, daily life, industrial and agricultural practices, architecture and gardens, and scientific institutions. His reports influenced many areas of Ottoman life and culture. There were early French translations of the Sefaratname but this is the first printing in Turkish.
Uncommon.