c1910 A Plain and Literal Translation of the Arabian Nights Entertainments, Now Entitled The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night With Introduction Explanatory Notes on the Manners and Customs of Moslem Men and a Terminal Essay Upon the History of The Nights; Supplemental Nights To the Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night with Notes Anthropological and Explanatory

Description

Illustrated, Original Binding, Publishers' Original Binding

The 'Burton Club' Samara Edition. Limited to 1000 numbered sets, of which this is number 339. Complete in seventeen volumes. Uniformly bound in the publisher's original cloth. Each volume is illustrated with a frontispiece and numerous monochrome plates throughout. Richard Burton's complete English translation of the famous collection of ancient Middle Eastern folktales, 'One Thousand and One Nights', a work which continues to have an immense influence on world literature today. Popular characters which originated in these tales include Aladdin, Sinbad, and Ali Baba. Burton's edition was originally published in ten volumes c1882, but was later followed by seven volumes titled, 'The Supplemental Nights to the Thousand Nights and a Night', both of these works are present in this set. Although widely popular, Burton was criticised for his extensive footnotes focusing on his anthropological interests which included sexual practices. Due to the Victorian laws of 'obscene material', Burton was forced to print these privately for subscribers' only. The 'Burton Club' editions were American editions published circa 1903 to 1930. The editions were named after Middle Eastern cities such as Benares, Mecca, Baghdad and Samara. Richard Francis Burton was a British explorer, writer and orientalist scholar. He is best known for his expedition to Mecca, in disguise as a Muslim, at a time when non-Muslims were strictly forbidden. Each volume has a bookseller's label for, 'Angus & Robertson', to the front paste-down.