LOBO, Jeronimo (1593-1678). A Short Relation of the River Nile, of its Source and Current. London, 1669. FIRST EDITION.
12mo (143 x 90 mm). (Small hole in title-page affecting 2 letters, extreme upper corners slightly gnawed, some minor soiling.) Contemporary calf (recased, preserving original endpapers). FIRST EDITION OF THE FIRST ENGLISH ACCOUNT OF THE NILE. Lobo and other Portuguese Jesuit missionaries embarked on a voyage from their mission at Goa to Ethiopia via the Island of Socotra, landing at Juba on the East African coast and travelling through the desert to the highlands of Ethiopia. There they established a mission and began their explorations, travelling to southern parts of the country not reached by Europeans again for another century. Until the Jesuits were expelled in 1634, Lobo continued his researches which extended south of Lake Tana to the Tisiat Falls and reached the source of the Blue Nile where it issues from the mountains in 1628. Lobo's work was translated into English by Peter Wyche at the request of the Royal Society; it was the only edition of his work published during his lifetime. Brunet VI, 20812; ESTC R12438; Howgego I: L138.
