Guatemala. The land of the quetzal.
New York: Charles Scribner, 1887. 8vo. xv, [i], 453 pp., including half-title, plus 16-page publisher’s catalogue. First Edition. With frontispiece, 25 full-page plates, 5 maps (3 folding), and numerous text illustrations. Green illustrated and gilt cloth, gilt spine, corners bumped; text is clean and bright. An excellent copy with the bookplate of Jerome A. Hart on the front paste-down. Item #15155
First edition of one of the most complete and thorough travelogues of Guatemala. As American interest in Central America was growing during the late nineteenth century, Brigham set out to explore what he considered to be the least traveled, but no less important regions. Compiled from notes from his three exploratory trips in Guatemala and Honduras, the author strives to produce the ultimate travel guide for those who follow in his footsteps. Brigham describes and catalogues the people, culture, economy, and flora of the region, paying particular attention to the material culture such as wood-working, weaving, cookery, and pottery.
Brigham (1841-1926) was an American ethnologist, geologist, and botanist. An expert on Hawaiian botany, he became the first director of the Bernice P. Bishop Museum in Honolulu. Brigham published numerous works over the course of his career on volcanology, botany, seismology, geology, classical art, and material culture, such as mat-weaving, stone and wood carvings, and feather work. The Hawaiian lobeloid genus, Brighamia, was named for him, and he was inducted as a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the California Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the Philadelphia Academy of Arts and Sciences.
Price: $250.00