1748 Letters Writ by a Turkish Spy antique book by Giovanni Paolo Marana vintage vol 7 by political refugee to the French court of Louis XIV

Letters Writ by a Turkish Spy (French: L'Espion Turc) is an eight-volume collection of fictional letters claiming to have been written by an Ottoman spy named "Mahmut", in the French court of Louis XIV. It is agreed that the first volume of this work was written by Giovanni Paolo Marana (1642–1693), a Genoese political refugee to the French court of Louis XIV. The first volume (102 letters) was published in several parts between 1684 and 1686 in both Italian and in a French translation. They were translated by William Bradshaw into English in 1687 under the supervision of Robert Midgley, who owned the copyright of the work.[3] The remaining seven volumes appeared first in English between 1691 and 1694, prefaced with a letter claiming that they were translated from a discovered Italian manuscript. A French edition of the last seven volumes (with the first) was published in 1696–7 and asserting that it was a translation from the English. The eight volumes contain 644 letters. (Wikipedia)

There has long been a controversy as to the authorship of the volumes subsequent to Marana's first. They have been attributed to many writers, most notably Robert Midgley and William Bradshaw, who produced the English translation.[5][6] However, given the similarities between the letters, and the stylistic coherence of the whole series, the likeliest author is Marana himself.[4][7] Marana may have had difficulty in getting the later volumes published in France and turned to England to secure their continuing appearance.[5]

The work was popular throughout the 18th century and went through fifteen complete editions by 1801.[5] Daniel Defoe was attracted to the deist rationalist sympathies of the purported spy; his Continuation of Turkish Letters Writ by a Turkish Spy in Paris (1718) extended the narrator's account from 1687 to 1693.[7]

CONDITION: VG-. Cover has blemishes, as shown in pictures. Pages have foxing. Whenever possible we handpick our books for very good condition & quality; we also carefully examine each book we receive to ensure that each one meets our strict quality criteria. An extraordinary amount of care is taken for shipping and handling of the books and we provide a Free Tracking Number with all of our orders. Our books ship well packaged, protected with bubble wrap. We promise quick shipping and delivery. We strive to provide excellent service!

ABOUT: Letters Writ by a Turkish Spy
Giovanni Paolo Marana
1748
Volume 7
Please see all pictures and noted condition. Grading scale:
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- VG- (Very Good): Worn. Defects are noted.
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