The Lives of Dr. Edward Pocock, the celebrated orientalist, by Dr. Twells; of Dr. Zachary Pearce, bishop of Rochester, and of Dr. Thomas Newton, bishop of Bristol, by themselves; and of the Rev. Philip Skelton, by Mr. Burdy. In Two Volumes. [ Volume I only, containing lives of Pocock and Pearce only ]

Twells, L. ; Pearce, Z.

Published by F.C. and J. Rivington, London, first edition thus,1816, 1816

About this Item

Recent half-morocco and marbled boards, top edge gilt, skiver spine-labels, 8vo, [6], 438 pp. The first (and self-contained) volume only of this two-volume collection, containing the complete lives of Dr Edward Pococke (pp 1-356) and Dr Zachary Pearce (pp 359-438). Leonard Twells's life of Pococke was first published in 1740 to accompany a collection of Pococke's writings and drew on earlier work by Humphrey Smith, assisted by Pococke's eldest son: it remains the chief source for knowledge of Pococke's character and career. Edward Pococke (1604-1691) was educated at Corpus Christi, Oxford and studied Arabic under Matthias Pasor, a German refugee, and William Bedwell, the pioneer English Arabist. He became the first Laudian Professor of Arabic at Oxford (subsequently also becoming Professor of Hebrew) and achieved recognition as one of Europe's greatest scholars: the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography begins its assessment of his reputation thus: "Pococke was the finest European Arabist of his time (only Golius could compare with him), and among the greatest of all time. He possessed not only a breadth and depth of learning astonishing in an age when most Arabic literature still had to be read in manuscript, but also a sympathy and understanding for Islamic culture almost unique in an intellectual climate in which suspicion and hatred for other sects and religions were the norm. His published work was long influential, and is still instructive. He was also an accomplished Hebraist, well read in rabbinical writings." A Very Good clean copy in a handsome modern binding. Seller Inventory # ABE-58868

Bibliographic Details

Title: The Lives of Dr. Edward Pocock, the ...

Publisher: F.C. and J. Rivington, London, first edition thus,1816

Publication Date: 1816

Binding: Hardcover

Edition: 1st Edition