The eight volumes of letters writ by a Turkish spy
Subtitle: who lived five and forty years undiscover'd at Paris : giving an impartial account to the divan at Constantinople, of the most remarkable transactions of Europe, and discovering several intrigues and secrets of the Christian courts (especially that of France) from the year 1637 to the year 1682
By: written originally in Arabick, translated into Italian, from thence into English, and now published with a large historical preface and index to illustrate the whole, by the translator of the first volume
Series: Early English books, 1641-1700 -- 1727:1
Publisher: Printed for Joseph Hindmarsh ..., and Richard Sare ...
Published: 1694
Place of publication: London
Language: eng
Format: microform :
Number of pages: 3108
Subjects: Spies; History
Other titles: Esploratore turco. English.; Esplou du grand seigneur. English.
Notes: Each volume has special t.p. and separate paging.

The first edition of this work began publication in 1684, when a volume in Italian entitled "L'esploratore Turco" and a French version entitled "L'esplou du grand seigneur" were published in Paris by C. Barbin. Authorship is disputed, but it is generally agreed that the first fifty letters (the original four volumes) were written by Marana. In the English editions, v. 1 contains the substance of the letters commonly ascribed to Marana. The continuation (i.e. v. 2-8), said to have appeared first in English, has been variously ascribed to Robert Midgley and William Bradshaw ; Bradshaw has also been attributed as the translator (from Marana's Italian manuscripts) of the entire work under Dr. Midgley's editorship. cf. DNB; also Gentleman's magazine, 1841, p. 270.

Engraved frontispiece, "Mahmut the Turkish spy", appears in each volume.

Imperfect: print show-through with loss of print.

Reproduction of original in Christ Church Library, Oxford University.

Wing (2nd ed.) M565EC