Oblong folio (351 x 268 mm). 50 hand-colored aquatint plates by Thomas and William Daniell, on thick paper, mounted on guards, each with accompanying text, edges gilt (bound horizontally, dampstaining to upper margins.) Modern half morocco and marbled boards. Provenance: The Doris Duke Collection; sold, Christie's (5 June 2004, lot 271).

FIRST EDITION. Originally issued in ten parts, the Picturesque Voyage documents Thomas and William Daniell's long voyage to China and on to India. The Daniells left England in April 1785 on board the Indiaman Atlas, arriving in Whampoa, China, in August. The plates include views of Madeira, the Cape of Good Hope, Java, Macao and Canton, while the accompanying text includes observations and descriptions of native peoples. Having spent several months in China, the Daniells then sailed on to Calcutta in a "country" coastal vessel. Abbey Travel 516; Colas 797; Lipperheide 1523; Mendelssohn I, p.413; Tooley 173.