MORRISON, Robert (1782-1834). A Grammar Of The Chinese Language. Serampore: Mission Press, 1815.
4to (279 x 229 mm). Wood-engraved diagram and Chinese characters in the text; errata. (A few leaves toned, some occasional spotting in margins.) Original drab boards, uncut (rebacked, preserving only a small portion of the original paper spine, some browning to covers). Provenance: The Pacific School of Religion (dealer note laid in, pencil shelf designation on title-page verso).
FIRST EDITION of the "FIRST WORK OF ITS KIND IN ENGLISH" (from the preface). Morrison was the first Protestant missionary to China and the London Missionary Society's first missionary to that country. He was a scholar of the Chinese language who pioneered the translation of the Bible into Chinese. At the time, to publish Christian books in Chinese was a capital crime, and an Edict was issued against him and anyone perceived as undermining Chinese religion. Morrison's Chinese grammar was completed in 1812, and printed in India. "It was a revolutionary undertaking, not only because it was the first of its kind in English, but also because Mandarin had never been used officially in writing and would remain strictly in colloquial use for at least another century" (Foley, Biblical Translation in Chinese and Greek: Verbal Aspect in Theory and Practice, p.76). RARE: Online records indicate the last copy appeared at auction in 2000 (this copy?). Bibliotheca Marsdeniana, p.181; Cordier Sinica 1661-1662; Khan 76; Löwendahl 782; Lust 1023.
