Archaeological and historical researches of Peking and its environs by E. Bretschneider, M.D., Physician to the Russian Legation at Peking

8vo (246x160 mm). [2], 63, [1 blank] pp. Illustrated with a map of Beijing and surroundings at p. 56 and IV folding plates with Chinese plans printed on thinner rice paper. Editor's printed wrappers (only front cover preserved). Ownership entry “Herr Profess. L. Müller in Wien […]” on the front cover. Bookplate John and Margareth Mackail on the title page. A good copy.

Rare first edition of this very important historical and geographical study on Beijing, first published in “The Chinese Recorder” the year before (1875, vol. VI, nos. 3, 5, and 6).

“His research on Beijing, which has been honored with a French translation by a young scholar, Mr. Collin de Plancy -now the French Minister in Seoul- is a model of local history; this excellent monograph is drawn from a large number of works written on the capital of China, and in particular from the Ji hia kiu wen, published in the 17^th century in 42 chapters by Tchou I-tsoun” (H. Cordier, Le Docteur Emile Vasilievitch Bretschneider, in: “T'oung Pao”, second series, vol. 2, no. 3, 1901, pp. 193 and 196).

“Emil Bretschneider, ‘physician at the Russian Embassy in Peking', as he calls himself, published an interesting booklet in 1876: Archaeological and Historical Researches on Peking and its Environs. Originally published in Shanghai by the American Presbyterian Mission, the work has recently been reprinted in an anastatic edition by Elibron Classics, s.d., Boston. In the enjoyable introduction, the author states how he had the chance to examine ancient Chinese texts in Peking, quoting from them with an archivist's precision. The works referred to include the Rixia jiuwen, by Zhu Yijun (1629-1709), which is a sort of anthology of texts from different periods referring to the city of Peking. The Qing emperor Qianlong set up a committee of literati to update the work and the new version was published under the title of Rixia jiuwen kao (1744, 160 chapters). The information gathered on the city in the past and in the present, on roads, temples, parks and suburbs, was mentioned in part by Bretschneider” (S. Cammelli, Storia di Pechino, Bologna, 2004, p. 27)

After earning his doctorate in medicine from the University of Dorpat, Bretschneider was appointed to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1862 as physician to the Russian legation in Tehran. He was then appointed physician to the legation in Beijing in 1866. He resided there from 1866 to 1883, taking two leaves of absence, one in 1871 and the other in 1878. He was granted retirement in February 1884 with the rank of current State Councilor. After retiring, he moved to St. Petersburg, where he continued to write and publish the works that established his reputation. In 1886, he was appointed a corresponding member of the Institut de France. He was also a corresponding member of the Paris Geographical Society.

OCLC, 253568013.

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