Pilgrimage to Mecca (In the Rare Dustjacket)
London: John Murray, 1934. Cloth. The 1934 1st edition of this groundbreaking historical memoir --authored by Scottish aristocrat Lady Evelyn Cobbold-- documenting her 1933 journey as the first recorded British-born woman to convert to Islam and then to perform the Haji, the sacred five-to-six-day pilgrimage to Mecca required once in a lifetime of every Muslim. This book constitutes Lady Evelyn Cobbold's experiences en route to Mecca (at Jeddah and Medina and ultimately at Mecca). (From the dustjacket front flap: "The Holy Places of Islam have been written about before but never from the point of a view of a Western woman convert to Islam. This makes Lady Evelyn Cobbold's book unique. She has had experiences in her pilgrimage to Mecca, and has visited sacred places under circumstances which have never before been permitted.") This, the 1934 original printing, is solid and very presentable, and includes its indisputably scarce original dustjacket. The book, in the publisher's green cloth, shows pronounced foxing and a bit of offsetting at its endsheets and pastedowns, and merits a VG-. Much lighter, intermittent foxing as well through the text. The 21 illustrations (crisp black-and-white, captioned photos; at least 1 full-page map) complement Lady Cobbold's text. And the fragile dustjacket, which clearly shows its 92 years, has held up quite well overall but also merits a conservative VG-, with its light chipping along the spine ends, the panel edges and the front flap-fold, and its mild spotting and soiling and even mild staining at the panels. This copy has been around the block --possibly even travelling back and forth between ther Middle East, Europe and The States (where it was found this time around). Octavo, Foreword by His Excellency Sheikh Hafiz Wahba, Sa'udi Arabian Minister in London. From the front cover: "A memorable portrayal at first-hand of the Hadj, and of the customs and way of life in Arabia under Ibn Sa'ud" Very Good - / Very Good -. Item #25924
Price: $5,000.00