Amsterdam: Jan Claesz ten Hoorn and Michiel Pieters, 1675. Three parts in one volume. First edition. Small 4to. Illustrated with an engraved title-page and seven engraved plates (including one folding), by J. van Avele and J. van Baden. Modern red sheep, recased; additional title-page soiled; browning and spotting throughout; a few small dampstains; lacking one preliminary leaf of text; one plate loose. Cordier Sinica 285

Rare first edition of this account by the last colonial Dutch governor of Formosa (Taiwan). The Chinese knew of the island from a very early date; Spanish and Portuguese navigators anchored there in the 16th century, but the Dutch were the first to colonize it, and they built Fort Zeelandia on the east coast in 1624. On the expulsion of the Ming dynasty from the Chinese mainland by the Manchus, a number of the defeated adherents crossed over to Formosa, and under their leader, a pirate called Coxinga, they were successful in expelling the Dutch. Seven years after the publication of this work, the Chinese of Formosa recognized the emperor K'ang-hi, and the island then began to form part of the Chinese empire.