Grammar of the Persian language 1804

Franz Lorenz von Dombay

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• About the artwork
  Grammatica lingua Persicae accedunt dialogi, historiae, sententiae et narrationes Persicae.
  Vienna, Albert Camesina, 1804.
  4to.
  Slightly later purple half morocco, gold-tooled spine, marbled endpapers.
  
  First edition of a grammar of the Persian language, written by the Austrian orientalist Franz Lorenz von Dombay (1758-1810). In his preface, Dombay states that there existed several Persian grammars, but he thought none of them sufficient to learn the language. His grammar starts with the basics: the Persian letters, gradually including more words and continuing with the syntax and morphology of the language. For the words he first gives the Arabic word, then a transcription of the word in the Latin alphabet, followed by the Latin translation of the word. The last fifty pages contain sentences, dialogues and some Persian narratives.Binding rubbed along the extremities. Title-page foxed and some minor foxing throughout, lower corner of page 45 slightly damaged, not affecting text, and some occasional small spots. Overall a good copy.
  
  Hage Chahine 1368; not in Atabey; Blackmer.
• About the artist
  Franz Lorenz von Dombay (1758, Vienna - 1810, Vienna) studied oriental languages, in particular Arabic, at the Wiener Akademie. In 1783 he joined a delegation of Emperor Joseph II to Morocco, where he intensively attended to oriental literature. Later on he was employed at the Imperial Embassy in Madrid.
  
  In 1802 he was appointed an interprete at the Court in Vienna. Dombay produced an Arabic grammar but above all he is renowned for his Grammatica linguae Persicae (Persian Grammar),Vienna (1804). He also wrote Geschichte der Scherifen oder der Könige des jetzt regierenden Hauses zu Marokko (1801; History of the sherifs or kings of the now governing House in Morocco).