Voyage de l'Arabie Pétrée.Paris, Giard, 1830. Imperial folio (42 x 59.6 cm). With a large lithographed title vignette and the coat of arms of Wilhelm II on the dedication leaf. 69 lithographed plates, maps, and plans after Laborde and Linant de Bellefonds, mostly mounted on India paper (including 3 folding and 2 coloured). Simier binding in gold-tooled half green morocco and marbled paper over boards, elaborately gold-tooled spine (and stamped in gold: "Simier R. du Roi"), marbled endpapers.

[8], 87, [1] pp.The first edition of this "important work" (Blackmer): a monumental folio, beautifully bound by René Simier (1772-1843) for King Louis-Philippe of France, from whose library it came into the hands of the great art collector and founder of the French branch of Rothschilds, Baron James de Rothschild.The volume is complete with all the magnificent views in large folio format; all subsequent editions, including the English one, were published in octavo and retained only a few plates of the original edition, all considerably reduced in size. The work was published following the trip undertaken by the Marquis Léon de Laborde (1807-69), and remained famous in particular for its views of Petra and its Khazneh. Laborde made the journey to Petra with the engineer Linant de Bellefonds in 1828, travelling from Suez via St. Catherine's and through Wadi al-Araba to Akabah. Although Burckhardt, Irby and Mangles had explored Petra before Laborde, he was the first to make detailed drawings of the area.Born in Frankfurt under the Holy Roman Empire, James de Rothschild initially moved to Paris to aid his brother Nathan Mayer Rothschild's business there; shortly, he established himself and his family at the heart of France's industrial revolution, and charted a steady course through the upheavals of 19th century French politics. Elevated to the status of Baron, his interest in art was genuine, and his collection well-respected.A beautiful text with an important provenance: bound for King Louis-Philippe of France. Latterly in the collection of the banker James Mayer Rothschild (1792-1868), founder of the French branch of the prominent Rothschild family.With the armorial bookplate of James de Rothschild and label of the Château de Ferrières on the front pastedown. Marbled paper subtly and professionally recovered at an early stage. Marginal dampstain apparent throughout.l Blackmer 929; Brunet III, 714; Gay 929; Henze III, 101; Nissen ZBI, 2335; Vicaire IV, 758f; not in Atabey; cf. Howgego 335, L2 (1830-33 ed.); Macro 1386 (2nd ed. only).