8vo (165 x 108 mm). 4pp. advertisement at end. (Some marginal toning, few small stains to title-page, first several leaves dampstained, including title-page near gutter.) Contemporary polished calf (rebacked, preserving original spine, binder's waste used for rear endleaves).

FIRST ENGLISH EDITION. Palafox y Mendoza was a Spanish bishop, administrator, and writer who documented the 1643-1647 invasion of China by the Manchu-led Qing dynasty and eventual fall of the Ming dynasty. In 1646, he founded the Biblioteca Palafoxiana in Puebla, Mexico, by donating his collection of 5,000 volumes to the Colegio de San Juan. This became the first public library in the Americas, with the condition that it be accessible to all, not just clergy, for the study of liberal arts and sciences. Cordier Sinica 627; ESTC R33642; Wing P200.