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An Imaginary Voyage through Ancient Greece

[LANTIER, ETIENNE FRANCOIS DE].

The Travels of Antenor in Greece and Asia: From a Greek Manuscript Found at Herculaneum: Including Some Account of Egypt. Translated from the French of . . .

Place and Imprint: London: Printed for T. N. Longman and O. Rees, 1799.
Edition: First translation into English.
Bibliographical References: ESTC T90076.
Condition: One leaf cleanly torn, without loss; edges a little rubbed; some slight foxing; fine, handsome copy.
Book ID: 29118

Physical Description

3 vols, 8vo, contemporary tree calf, dark green morocco spine labels, gilt decorations and lettering. Errata and two pages of publisher's advertisements in volume 3.

Comments

A clever and engaging work of fiction by French writer and playwright Etienne François de Lantier (1724-1826), first published in Paris in 1798. The Travels of Antenor was written under the guise of being an ancient manuscript found during the excavation of Herculaneum, written by one Antenor, an obscure Greek writer who was born in Ephesus and educated in Athens. As a young man he falls in love with the brilliant and charming Lasthenia and writes a play to attract her attention; he successfully secures her attention and friendship, but not her love. Antenor then travels extensively in the company of several companions to all the corners of Greece and as far east as Babylon, during which he encounters legendary figures, beginning with Sappho on Lesbos (he witnesses her suicide), Diogenes, Thales, Damocles, Bacchus, Ibycus, Theophrastus, Apollonides, Bion, Aristippus, Crates, et al. His narrative is a virtual who’s who of Ancient Greece. After years of travel Antenor returns to Athens; he attends to Lasthenia during her final days, marries her sister Telesilla, and ceases to wander. The translator (unfortunately not identified) added numerous annotations and references, including to the Classical Greek translations of Francis Fawkes, and the text includes parts of Fawkes' translations of Anacreon. Gladstone family copy with the Fasque bookplate on each front paste-down.

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