4to (267 x 203 mm). (Few closed tear repairs to last two leaves, not affecting letters.) Contemporary half calf, marbled boards.

FIRST EDITION. Robert Morrison, noted missionary and Chinese scholar, "proved that it was possible for Europeans to publish works in Chinese in China itself; and... [was] a scholarly facilitator of cultural exchange between Europe and China" (ODNB), having published the first Chinese-English dictionary on a press shipped out from England to Macau specifically for that purpose. RARE: Online records indicate that only two copies have appeared at auction in the past 50 years. Lowendahl 793; Lust 126.