A TRUE AND ALMOST INCREDIBLE REPORT OF AN ENGLISHMAN, that (being cast away in the good ship called the Assension in Cambaya, the farthest part of the East Indies) travelled by land thorow many unknowne kingdomes and great cities. by COVERTE, Robert. Bookplate of Frances Mary Richardson Currer.: - 1631

London, printed by I. N. for Hugh Perry, 1631.. VVith a particular description of all those kingdomes, cities, and people: as also, a relation of their commodities and manner of traffique, and at what seasons of the yeere they are most in use. Faythfully related: with a discovery of a great emperour called the Great Mogoll, a prince not till now knowne to our English nation. THIRD EDITION 1631. Small slim 4to, approximately 180 x 140 mm, 7 x 5½ inches, printed in black letter, pages: title page, 1-68, plus colophon leaf, lacks the original initial and final blank leaves also 2 preliminary leaves which should follow the title page, Epistle Dedicatorie and To the Reader, the main text is complete. The title page appears to be cancel or an early re-set printed replacement, the mistake "Traffiqne" which appears on the title page of all the 1631 editions located, has been corrected to "Traffique", also other small corrections, eg: spacing is different on 2nd line, no hyphen between "Almost Incredible", typeface etc. Bound in half green roan over marbled boards, gilt title to spine. Spine rubbed, corners and board edges slightly worn, small scrape to surface paper on lower cover, some pencil notes on front pastedown, 3 armorial bookplates on endpapers, 1 belonging to Frances Mary Richardson Currer and another, her grandfather Mathew Wilson, and one of Arthur Dalrymple, upper margins slightly trimmed, running title shaved in a few places with loss, small light brown stain to lower corner of 4 leaves, light browning to a few pages. Binding tight and firm. A very good copy (lacking first and last blank and 2 preliminary leaves as noted). There is very little information about Robert Coverte. Although styled on the title page as Captaine Robert Covert, it seems he was steward on the 'Ascension' which sailed from Plymouth in 1607. The vessel ran aground going into Surat, the primary port of the Moghul Empire, but the crew escaped ashore in boats. An English merchant introduced them to the court of the Great Mogul at Agra arriving in December 1609. Coverte with his companions started out for home from Agra at the beginning of 1610 choosing to travel overland through Kandahar, Esfahan, and Baghdad. They reached Aleppo in December 1610 and then took a ship back to England arriving in April 1611. Coverte's account of his travels was first published in 1612 and again in 1614. See: A Catalogue of the Library Collected by Miss. Richardson Currer, page 150; Howgego, Encyclopedia of Exploration, Volume I, C211; Edward G. Cox, A Reference Guide to the Literature of Travel, Volume I, page 266; Sotheby's, The Library of Franklin Brooke-Hitching, Exploration and Discovery 1576-1939, Part 1, No 335; ESTC S108890. Englands first known lady book collector, Frances Mary Richardson Currer (1785-1861) was a well-known bibliophile and scholar, and had one of the largest libraries in the north of England. She was one of the founders of the Clergy Daughters School at Cowan Bridge which Charlotte and Emily Bronte both attended and her surname is undoubtedly the source of Charlotte's pseudonym, 'Currer Bell'. MORE IMAGES ATTACHED TO THIS LISTING, ALL ZOOMABLE. FURTHER IMAGES ON REQUEST. POSTAGE AT COST.