Books in Georgian or about Georgia

"[One of the] pioneer female travelers to Georgia" (Skinner)

Prince Tariel: A Story of Georgia

Jonathan Cape, London, 1925. £1,750

Suppressed and very rare first edition of this novel, written by an adventurous woman travelling in troubled times. Great book by a fascinating woman and a nice copy of it!

Image for SEBAH. Georgian Man. Photography, ca. 1880s. #2

In traditional dress

SEBAH, Pascal

Portrait of a Georgian Man

Constantinople, [c.1880]. £125

Lovely carte-de-visite portrait by the leading photographer based in Constantinople.

Image for V. STASOV - STASOFF, Slavic and Oriental Manuscript Ornament. First edition in the original French and Russian. St. Petersburg, 1884-87. #2

Illuminated manuscripts from Europe to Central Asia through Greece, the Caucasus, Ethiopia and Arabic regions

STASOV – STASOFF, Vladimir Vasilievich

Slavianskii i vostochnyi ornament po rukopisiam drevniago i novago vremeni. L'Ornement slave et oriental d'après les manuscrits anciens et modernes

A.A. Reinbot for Ilin, Skt. Peterburg, 1884-87. £1,950

A complete copy of this magnificent production of high-level Russian art history, here focusing on manuscript decorations over centuries and many various regions, with many superb examples, from Central Europe, Georgia, Armenia, Egypt, Central Asia etc.

Image for V. GOLITSYN. Tsikhis-Dziri. Dachnoe mesto bliz Batumi. First edition, Batumi, 1911. #2

The ideal dacha on the Black Sea coast

GOLITSYN, V

Tsikhis-Dziri. Dachnoe mesto bliz Batumi [Tsikhis-Dziri: A Place for Summer Homes Near Batumi]

Tavartkiladze, Batumi, 1911. £750

A detailed publication advertising the dacha-lifestyle on the Georgian coast, a relatively recently conquered region - richly illustrated, with the folding map and much practical information. Very rare, with no copied traced in the West.

Image for N. MARR. Basic Tables for the Grammar of Ancient Georgian. First edition, St. Petersburg, 1908. #2

Georgian language explained

MARR, N[ikolai]

Osnovnyia tablitsy k grammatike drevne-gruzinskago iazyka [Basic Tables for the Grammar of the Ancient Georgian Language]

Skt. Peterburg, Akad. Nauk, 1908. £1,250

First edition of this remarkable study of Georgian, published to support Marr's celebrated 'Japhetic theory'. Fresh internally with almost 30 folding tables. Rare.

Image for KLAPROTH. Travels in the Caucasus and Georgia... First edition in English, London, 1814. #2

Ethnography in the Caucasus

KLAPROTH, Julius von

Travels in the Caucasus and Georgia, Performed in the Years 1807 and 1808 by Command of the Russian Government

London, Henry Colburn, 1814. £2,850

Lovely copy, in contemporary binding, of this major work on the Caucasus region and its people. First English edition.

Image for M. DZHANASHVILI. History of Georgia and Russia. First edition, inscribed. Tiflis, 1912. #2

History from Georgia and Armenia, to Central Asia and Palestine - inscribed

DZHANASHVILI, Mose

K materialam po istorii o drevnostiam Gruzii i Rossii [On the History and Antiquities of Georgia and Russia]

Tip. Kantseliarii Namestnika E.I.V. na Kavkaze, Tiflis, 1912. £1,500

A desirable copy of this historical booklet with an agenda: showing that Georgia and Russia haven been naturally linked for centuries. Covering also other, more unexpected regions. First edition, inscribed and with émigré provenance.

Image for E. ZICHY. Travels to the Caucasus and Central Asia. First edition, in French and Hungarian. Budapest, 1897. #2

Extensive ethnography of the peoples of the Caucasus

ZICHY, Eugene [Jenő], Dr. Jean [Janos] JANKO and Dr. Bela POSTA

Kaukaìzuri eìs Közeìpaìzsiai utazaìsai. Voyages au Caucase et en Asie Centrale : La Migration de la race Hongroise [et] La Description des collections

V. Hornyanszky for G. Ranschburg, Budapest, 1897. £1,950

Fine copy of this great scholarly work on the population of the Caucasus, richly illustrated. First edition.

Image for WEYDEMEYER. Tableaux...de l'Empire de Russie. First edition, St. Petersburg, 1828. #2

Mapping Russia's history and development for an international audience

WEYDEMEYER, Alexandre de

Tableaux historiques, chronologiques, geographiques et statistiques de l'Empire de Russie, avec une carte généalogique

Pluchart for Bellizard and others, St. Petersbourg, 1828. £3,250

First edition of this impressive wide-ranging work, finely printed by Pluchart in St. Petersburg. A scarce publication, with a wealth of information on the Russian empire up to Pushkin's time.

Image for Watercolour portrait of Hadji Murat. Tbilisi, 1852. #2

Contemporary portrait

French school of the 19^th century

Portrait de Hadji Mourad

Tiflis, 30 January 1852. £4,750

Extremely rare contemporary portrait of a famous Caucasian rebel - described by Gagarin and Tolstoy.

Image for GAGARINE, Prince Grégoire. Dessins et croquis d'après nature. St. Petersbourg, 1902. First edition. #2

An aristocrat, traveller and diplomat, with artistic talents

GAGARINE, Prince Grégoire – Kniaz Grigorii Grigorevich GAGARIN

Dessins et croquis d'après nature. Risunki i nabroski s natury

Expéd. p. la confection des papiers d'État, St. Petersbourg, 1902. £4,500

Gagarin's artistic record of Turkish and Caucasian types, among other sketches reproduced, including portraits of Russian aristocrats in the Caucasus, Gypsies in Moscow and views of Egypt and Greece. A beautiful, large format production of one of the best Russian presses of the time. A fine example with contemporary provenance.

Image for [AVANT-GARDE] Catalogue of Third Exhibition of Paintings, Tbilisi, 1920. #2

Out of stock

More than 400 avant-garde works listed

PIROSMANI, Niko, Kirill ZDANEVICH, Lado GUDIASHVILI and other artists

Me-3e suratebis gamopena, ivnisi-ivlisi 1920 ts. 3-ia vystavka kartin, iiun-iiul 1920 g [Third Exhibition of Paintings, June-July 1920]

Tbilisi-Tiflis, [Saxelmcipʻo stamb], 1920.

Bilingual catalogue (Georgian Russian) of the largest exhibition of Georgian and Russian avant-garde artists in Tbilisi, listing almost 50 artists. Extremely rare with only 3 other copies traced.

Image for SHOPEN. History and Inhabitants of the Caucasus. First edition in the original Russian. St. Petersburg, 1866. #2

Out of stock

History and languages of the Caucasus

SHOPEN, Ivan

Novye zametki na drevniia istorii Kavkaza i ego obitatelei [New Notes on the Ancient History of the Caucasus and its Inhabitants]

Skt. Peterburg, N. Tiblen, 1866.

Pleasant copy of this scarce work; first edition. A deep analysis of the ancient chronicles and of the languages of the peoples of the Caucasus, mostly Gergians, Armenians and Azeris, but not only.

Image for J. KLAPROTH. Asia polyglotta. Second edition of the text, Paris, 1831. #2

Out of stock

"A new departure for the classification of Eastern languages" (Encycl. Britannica)

KLAPROTH, Julius

Asia polyglotta

Paris, Beideloff & Campe, 1831.

Impressive work on all languages from the Caucasus to the North Pacific through Central Asia, Siberia, China and the Far East. Very rare on the market.

Image for [BELLARMINO]. Dottrina cristiana in Georgian, first edition. Rome, 1741. #2

Out of stock

Travelling catechism for the Caucasus

[BELLARMINO, Roberto and David TLUK’AANT [also TLUKAANTI], David (translator)]

Sakrist'iano Modzghuareba [Christian Instruction/Doctrine]

Rome, Propaganda Fide, 1741.

Fresh example of this small book, printed by the Catholiocs in Rome for missions in Georgia. First edition in Georgian, rare.

Image for [GEORGIAN LANGUAGE]. Georgian for Foreigners. First edition, very rare. Tbilisi, 1925. #2

Out of stock

Georgian for foreigners in early Soviet Union

SIKHARULIDZE I., P. METREVELI, Salomon GOGLICHIDZE and David GVELESIANI (artist)

Kartuli enis sakhelmdzghvanelo arakartveltatvis: Pirveli Tsigni. Uchebnik gruzinskogo iazyka dlia ne-gruzin. Kniga pervaia… [Textbook of Georgian Language for Non-Georgians: Book One]

Poligraftrest, Tbilisi, 1925.

A fascinating, pioneering booklet, whose fragility is witness to printing in early Soviet Georgia. For Russians, Armenians and Azerbaijanis, it seems to be the first such textbook for foreigners. Of extraordinary rarity, with only one other copy traced outside Georgia and 6 copies there; no copy in Russia and none in the Americas.