IONIA: A QUEST (First edition, first printing - illustrated)

First printing of the true first edition. With a three-page foreword and nine-page "Synopsis of History (may be omitted by the well-informed)" by Freya Stark to the fore. Attractive green engraved vignette by Reynolds Stone to the title-page. Profusely illustrated with black and white photographs by Freya Stark. Double-page black and red sketch-map by E. G. Morton. ***Very good in blue-green textured cloth-covered boards with gilt titles to the spine and front board. Boards quite clean with some marks commensurate with age and handling and some browning to the spine. Please note, there is an old surface water-stain to the bottom corner of the front board, not affecting the interior pages (please see scans). No creases or bumps. Corners sharp. No reading lean to the binding. Spine tight. Page block edges clean, with the top edge stained blue-green by the publisher to match the boards (now faded). Internally also very good with light offsetting to front and rear free endpapers. Attractive, contemporaneous black and white astrological "Scorpio" wood-cut illustrated Ex-Libris bookplate to front board: 'Ex-Libris Scorpio John O'Connor - Carpe Diem'. No other inscriptions or annotations. Interior pages clean. No foxing. No creases or tears. All plates present. Edges of boards slightly rubbed. Spine faded. Old surface water-stain to bottom corner of front board not affecting interior pages. No dustwrapper. xxiv prelim-pages plus 263 text-pages including References and Index at the back of the book. 204mm x 156mm. ***Contents: Foreword; Synopsis of History; Dates; Chapters: 1. Dawn in Ionia; 2. Smyrna (The Family in the Levant); 3. Clazeomenae (The Philosophic Weather); 4. Teos. Anacreon and the Poetry of Living; 5. Erythrae (Exile and Slavery); 6. Chios (Ingredients of Empire); 7. Myrina (New Harvests Cover the Land); 8. Gryneium (Solitude and Patrotism); 9. Pitane (Toleration and Truth); 10. Pergamum (The Raiders of the Border); 11. Cyme (The Phrygian Mood; 12. Phocaea. (Decision). ***'Dame Freya Madeline Stark DBE (31 Jan 1893 - 9 May 1993) was a British-Italian explorer and travel writer. She wrote more than two dozen books on her travels in the Middle East and Afghanistan as well as several autobiographical works and essays. She was one of the first non-Arabs known to travel through the southern Arabian Desert in modern times.' (Wiki) ***'The book describes Freya Stark's travels in 1952 to fifty-five ancient ruined and deserted classical sites in Western Turkey. Dedicated to Harold Nicolson and Vita Sackville West. ***First printing of the true first edition, profusely illustrated, and with an attractive contemporaneous Ex-Libris bookplate. We also have a first edition of "THE LYCIAN SHORE" listed, with the dustwrapper. ***For all our books, postage is charged at cost, allowing for packaging: any shipping rates indicated on ABE are an average only: we will reduce the P & P charge where appropriate - please contact us for postal rates for heavier books and sets etc. …