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Rare and Antiquarian Books

Asian History

Many of our Biblio booksellers offer rare Asian history books. Asian history is a popular topic, and many of the antique Asian history books include unique and beautiful illustrations and maps. Any antiquarian books collection should embrace rare Asian history books. Search this page for many examples of rare and valuable books that specialize in Asian history.



East Wind West Wind
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East Wind West Wind

by Pearl S. Buck

  • Used
  • good
  • Hardcover
  • first
Condition
Used - Good
Edition
1930
Binding
Hardcover
Seller
Winfield, Illinois
Item Price
$100.00

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Description:
Brown hardcover, no dj. Foredge looks like it was nawed on by a mouse, almost half way up. Spine is bent. Near Fine inside except pages are discolored from the acid in the paper. Main portion of Cover is VG. Wear along front edge of spine at bottom. Title Page shows the publisher as The Reader's League of America New York City, New York. Copyright Page states 1930 Pearl S. Buck. (No other publisher listed). The author thanks Asia Magazine for allowing her to reprint some previous material.
Item Price
$100.00
Ceylon: a general description of the island and its inhabitants; with an historical sketch of the...
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Ceylon: a general description of the island and its inhabitants; with an historical sketch of the conquest of the Colony by the English.

by Marshall, Henry

  • Used
  • Hardcover
  • first
Condition
Used - See item description
Binding
Hardcover
Seller
Hay on Wye, Herefordshire
Item Price
$482.07

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Description:
William H Allen. London. 1846. 8vo. xvi, 287pp. Map, coloured in outline, frontis., engraved sketch plan of Kandy. Later full cloth, with the spine in six compartments, gilt lettering, paying homage to the original cloth binding. New endpapers. Pages untrimmed. Lightly toned. Occasional light pencil marginal annotation.
Henry Marshall (1775-1851), MD, FRSE, Naturalist, Historian, served in Ceylon from 1809-1821. Appendix X contains his eyewitness account of the execution of Kappitipola in November 1818, whose cranium Marshall took back to the museum of the Phrenological Society of Edinburgh. "The fate of Kappitipola resembled that of Sir William Wallace, the beloved champion of Scotland".
Item Price
$482.07
The History of the Indian Mutiny: Giving a Detailed Account of the Sepoy Insurrection in India;...
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London and New York: London Printing and Publishing Co, 1858. Hardcover. Very Good +. "Illustrated with Battle Scenes, Views of Places, Portraits and Maps, Beautifully Engraved on Steel." 2 volumes: [8], 2, vii, [1], 647, [1] p.; [4], viii, 663, [1] p., frontispiece and added engraved title page in each volume and 77 leaves of additional engraved plates (including double-leaf map); 28 cm. Modern leather rebacking with gilt-tooled spine titles; original maroon pebble-cloth over boards. No date of publication; History of the Indian Mutiny was issued in parts in 1858 and 1859. Each volume contains the London Printing and Publishing Co. title page (with, as appropriate, vol. I or vol. II); vol. 1 also contains a title page for S.D. Brain, stating "Copyright Edition." Inscription on blank leaf preceding vol. 1 frontispiece indicating that this was given by James W. Leonard to John H. Bowman in 1939. Heavy; for international shipping, they will have to be sent by international… Read More
Item Price
$603.00
MASSIVE ARCHIVE OF THOUSANDS OF ORIGINAL PHOTOGRAPHS AND PHOTOGRAPHIC SLIDES, ALONG WITH NUMEROUS...

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Vietnam, Thailand, and elsewhere in Asia as well as the United States, Europe, and the Middle East ca. 1964-1974: Compiled by Jacob Harris, an American who served as a Senior Police Advisor in Vietnam and Thailand during the Vietnam War, 1964 - 1974., 1964 - 1974. First edition. A large and remarkable archive of images from Vietnam and Thailand, covering the decade from the Gulf of Tonkin incident and the beginning of the buildup of American forces in Vietnam to a year before the evacuation of the American embassy. Most notable are the many images showing the training of local security forces by American civil and military advisors. The collection was compiled by Jacob Harris, an employee of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Office of Public Safety (OPS), whose task was to train Vietnamese and Thai police and counterinsurgency forces. Most of the images, in the form of photographs and photographic slides, were created by Harris, his wife, or his associates, and… Read More
Item Price
$15,000.00
Le Temple D'Angkor Vat (Memoires Archeologiques / Publies Par L'Ecole Francaise D'Ex)
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Le Temple D'Angkor Vat (Memoires Archeologiques / Publies Par L'Ecole Francaise D'Ex)

by Louis Finot

  • Used
  • as new
  • Hardcover
Condition
As New
Edition
Reprint of French ed.
Binding
Hardcover
ISBN 13
9781878529169
ISBN 10
1878529161
Seller
Woodstock, New York
Item Price
$285.00

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Description:
Bangkok: SDI Publications, 1995. 3 Vols. Beautifully published reprint edition limited to 999 copies. Originally published: Paris : Les Éditions G. Van Oest, 1929-1932. Folio. in slipcase. French text. prof. illus. vol. 1. L'architecture du monument / introduction de Louis Finot; vol. 2: La sculpture ornementale du temple / introduction de Victor Goloubew; vol. 3: La galerie des bas-reliefs / introduction de G. Coedès. Notes. cloth, d.j. lightly rubbed, slipcase, otherwise As New. Rare.This set is heavy and requires additional freight charge as well as insurance.
Item Price
$285.00
Vernacular Translation of the Military Tale of the Han and Chu. Tsūzoku kanso gundan,...
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1696 Japanese Woodblock Chinese History Tsuzoku kanso gundan Qing Han War CHINA
A 17th century Sino-Japanese woodblock print history of the Chu-Han Contention between the Qing and Han Dynasty bound in the fukurotoji style. The Tsuzoku kanso gundan is the tale of the conflict between the chu and han after the Qing Dynasty before Liu Bang united China in 202 BC as the emperor of the Han Dynasty. It was translated into Japanese and in turn helped shape Japanese literature away from the stylized Chinese verse of scholarly attention and began considering the more mundane, as literature as well. This was done by entertaining and educating the natives of Japan about the world, specifically China, who were banned from leaving the mainland during that time period. Pastreich writes,
"Such Chinese historical novels may have appealed to Japanese readers because they covered the details of Chinese history in a lively and accessible manner, going beyond the digested and sanitized description of history to the… Read More
Item Price
$950.00
An Authentic Account of an Embassy from the King of Great Britain to the Emperor of China....
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Printed by W. Bulmer & Co. for G. Nicol. London. 1797. FIRST EDITION. Three volumes. - 2 quarto text volumes (12 x 9.4 inches), and a folio atlas of plates (16.6 x 12.3 inches). Complete. Text volumes in contemporary full brown calf boards with decorative gilt borders. Re-spined in recent brown calf with raised bands, the compartments ruled in blind, two red morocco labels, lined and lettered in gilt. Gilt inner dentelles. Marbled endpapers. All edges marbled. The atlas volume bound in recent half brown calf. Spine with raised bands, each decorated in gilt. Compartments ruled in gilt. Red title label, gilt. Marbled paper on boards. Text volumes with engraved portrait frontispiece to each, 1 plate and 26 vignettes after William Alexander et al. in all, atlas with 44 engraved views, plans, plates and maps and charts, including large folding world map, 3 natural history subjects and 25 views. Some foxing and sporadic spotting to both text and atlas, a couple of the maps have professional repairs to… Read More
Item Price
$17,126.10
The Cossacks: A Tale of the Caucasus in the Year 1852. UKRAINIA

The Cossacks: A Tale of the Caucasus in the Year 1852. UKRAINIA

by Tolstoi, Count Lyof N.

  • Used
  • Hardcover
  • first
Condition
Used - Good-
Edition
First English Edition
Binding
Hardcover
Seller
Salem, Oregon
Item Price
$189.95

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Description:
UKRAINIA Tolstoi, Count Lyof N.: The Cossacks: A Tale of the Caucasus in the Year 1852. First English Edition, 1888 Walter Scott, 24 Warwick Lane, Paternoster Row, London. Translated from the Russian by Nathan Haskell Dole. Summary: A novel of the Caucasian War 1817-1864. Used.
Good- Condition/ No DJ. Blue Boards gold titling and ornamentation. Imperial Russian crest stamped in gilt at center front. A solid copy. Light foxing to endpapers. Toning. Fabric at top of spine missing. RARE/SCARCE.
Item Price
$189.95
Moeurs, usages et costumes de tous les peuples du monde d'après des documents authentiques et...
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Bruxelles: Librairie historique-artistique, 1843. First edition. 4 large in-8 volumes, (27cm x 17cm) Midnight blue half-sheepskin binding, embossed percaline covers, spines have gilt titles and decoration. Illustrated with hand coloured / hand finished engraved plates. These were created by the leading illustrators of the time, including Duverger, L. Markaert, R. King. The bindings are in very good condition, with a little rubbing to the edges only. Inside, the text and plates have light foxing throughout, but are overall in very good condition. Each copy online offers a different number of plates for each of the four volumes - but our copy seems to match the maximum collation for each variation (so seems complete.) The index is of limited use, as it only lists a proportion of the plates. In addition to the four title vignettes, we have: Europe (1844). 364 pages, 49 plates; Asie (1845). 592 pages, 82 plates; L'Afrique et l'Amérique (1844), 368 pages, 43 plates; l'Océanie (1845) 368 pages 36… Read More
Item Price
$1,554.03
The Chinese Dragon
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The Chinese Dragon

by L Newton Hayes

  • Used
  • very good
  • Hardcover
  • first
Condition
Used - Very Good
Binding
Hardcover
Seller
Los Angeles, California
Item Price
$100.00

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Description:
Original 1922 Very Good First se story of the Dragon in roads folklore and roof Pagodas Printed and published in Shanghai pre-World War II China Referenced in John Michell View over Atlantis here in original edition, See our scans.
Item Price
$100.00
The Chinese Woodcut: A New Art for the 400 Million
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New York, Touchstone Press with the cooperation of the Tribune Subway Gallery, 1948. Soft portfolio. 9 x 12 inches. Very Good. Nine of the original loose eleven black and white plates (plus cover art) in slightly worn portfolio. Contents clean, slightly toned. Text introduction by Anges Smedley missing. Communist era China, revolutionary period.
Item Price
$200.00
The Megha Duta, or Cloud Messenger, a poem, in the Sanscrit language.
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The Megha Duta, or Cloud Messenger, a poem, in the Sanscrit language.

by Kālidāsa (c. 4th–5th century CE); Horace Hayman Wilson (1786-1860, trans.).

  • Used
Condition
Used
Seller
The Hague, Netherlands
Item Price
$1,394.25

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Description:
Wilson's first published Sanskrit translation, the first publication of the Meghadūta in the West
Kālidāsa (c. 4th–5th century CE); Horace Hayman Wilson (1786-1860, trans.).

The Megha Duta, or Cloud Messenger, a poem, in the Sanscrit language.

Calcutta printed: London reprinted, Black, Parry, and Co., 1814.

8°. XXII, 23-175 pp. Later half calf, marbled sides.First English translation of the Meghadūta, the most renowned text by India's greatest ancient poet. This famous Sanskrit love poem became popular in Europe in the early 19th century, chiefly because of the present translation by Horace Wilson. Written in the 4th-5th century by the Classical Sanskrit author Kālidāsa, it tells the story of a lover who sends his message to his beloved by a cloud. The present edition includes Wilson's commentaries on his translation of the ancient poem.
Translator Horace Wilson was the first professor of Sanskrit at Oxford. He made his name through his many translations of ancient Sanskrit texts. For… Read More
Item Price
$1,394.25
Quotations from President Liu Shao-Ch'i
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Quotations from President Liu Shao-Ch'i: With an introduction by C P FitzGerald.

by LIU SHAO-CH'I

  • Used
  • first
Condition
Used
Edition
First edition thus.
Seller
Kingston, New York
Item Price
$650.00

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Description:
LIU SHAO-CH'I. Quotations from President Liu Shao-Ch'i. With an introduction by C P FitzGerald. Melbourne: Paul Flesch & Co., 1968. Photographic portrait frontispiece of Liu Shao-Ch'i, also a facsimile of President Liu's calligraphy. Small 16mo, 223pp + colophon; yellow vinyl lettered in black on front cover and spine, original stiff paper band wrapped around lower binding which has caused small offset of red coloring. Nevertheless, a fine copy. First edition thus, clearly an imitation of Chairman Mao's 1964/65 Mao Zhu XI Yu Lu (Quotations of Chairman Mao.) issued by the Central Intelligence Bureau of the Chinese People's Liberation Army. The color yellow is intended to represent the warmth and sunshine under the regime of President Liu. By 1968 it was estimated that over 700 million copies of Mao's "Little Red Book" had been printed/distributed. It is believed that the Cultural Revolution began in response to criticism Mao experienced from President Liu; subsequently Liu was condemned,… Read More
Item Price
$650.00
A New and Complete System of Universal Geography; Describing Asia, Africa, Europe and America; in...
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A New and Complete System of Universal Geography; Describing Asia, Africa, Europe and America; in Four Volumes (v1-1798, v2-1800, v3-1799, v4-1799): "Paynes Universal Geography", FIRST EDITION

by Payne, John

  • Used
  • Hardcover
  • first
Condition
Used - Very Good+
Edition
First
Binding
Hardcover
Seller
Lincoln, Nebraska
Item Price
$4,250.00

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Description:
A New and Complete System of Universal Geography; Describing Asia, Africa, Europe, and America; with their Subdivisions of Republics, States, Empires and Kingdoms; the Extent, Boundaries, and Remarkable Appearances of each Country; Cities, Towns, and Curiosities of Nature and Art. [1798, 1800, 1799, 1799 sequentially]Also giving a general account of the Fossil and Vegetable Productions of the Earth, the History of Man, in all Climates, Regions, and Conditions; Customs, Manners, Laws, Governments, and Religions; the State of Arts, Sciences, Commerce, Manufactures, and Knowledge...To Which is Added, A View of Astronomy, as Connected with Geography; Of the Planetary System to Which the Earth Belongs; ...with a Copious Index annexed to each volume, Being a large and comprehensive Abridgement of Universal Geography.By John Payne. with Additional Corrections and Improvements from the Latest and Best Authors. by James Hardie, A.M. Author of Principles of Latin Grammar, the American Remembrances, and… Read More
Item Price
$4,250.00
The First Filipino: A Biography of Jose Rizal
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The First Filipino: A Biography of Jose Rizal

by Guerrero, Leon Ma.

  • Used
  • Hardcover
Condition
Used - Very Good+
Edition
Third Printing
Binding
Hardcover
Seller
Portland, Oregon
Item Price
$225.00

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Description:
Manila, Philippines: National Historical Commission, 1969. Third Printing. Hardcover. Very Good+. 7" x 10" Hardcover; 549pp; Maroon boards, gilt titling to spine, boards square, clean & bright, text unmarked, binding is tight, VG+ condition. Biography of Jose Protasio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda (1861-1896), Filipino nationalist, writer & polymath active at the end of the Spanish colonial period in the Philippines, considered the national hero of the Philippines. Introduction by Carlos Quirino. Awarded First Prize in the Rizal Biography Contest held under the auspices of the Jose Rizal National Centennial Commission in 1961.
Item Price
$225.00