Voyage dans le Timanni, le Kouranko et le Soulimana contrées de l'Afrique occidentale, fait en 1822 par le major Gordon-Laing. Traduit de l'anglais par MM. Eyries et de Larenaudière, précédé d'un essai sur les progrès de la géographie de l'Intérieur de l'Afrique et sur les principaux voyages de découvertes qui s'y rattachent.

8vo: lxv-432 pp.; 1 map + 8 lith. pl. (some, mostly marg., foxing to pl., map sl. age-toned and with a short, marg. tear).

Contemp. calf, boards with blind-stamped and gilt border and blind-stamped vignette, spine with 4 raised gilted bands, compartments with blind-tooled and gilt vignettes, gilt title, marbled edges (rebacked). Good copy.

First French edition, translated from the 1st English ed. of 1825, with a long, additional essay on the progress of the knowledge of western Africa, particularly Sierra Leone, not present in the English edition. This work contains 1 folded, engr. map and 8 lith. pl. The additions are by the French writer, geographer and co-founder of the Sociéte de Géographie, Philippe François Lasnon De Larenaudière (1781-1845). Alexander Gordon Laing (1794-1826) "[...] was a British explorer and the first European to reach Timbuktu via the north / south route. [...] While with his regiment at Sierra Leone, he was sent by the governor Sir Charles MacCarthy, to the Mandingo country, with the double object of opening up commerce and endeavouring to abolish the slave trade in that region. Later in the same year Laing visited Falaba, the capital of the Solimana country, and ascertained the source of the Rokel. He endeavoured to reach the source of the Niger, but was stopped by the natives. He was, however enabled to fix it with approximate accuracy. He took an active part in the Ashanti War of 1823-24, and was sent home with the despatches containing the news of the death in action of Sir Charles MacCarthy. While in England in 1824, Laing prepared a narrative of his journeys, which was published in 1825".
Ref. Gay 2845.
Prov. Colonel Philippe Milon (1908-1992), French colonial officer in Africa, ardent environmentalist and amateur ornithologist (pictorial bookpl.).