The Arts of Central Asia: The Pelliot Collection in the Musée Guimet. General Editor Jacques Giès. Translated by Hero Friesen in collaboration with Roderick Whitfield. de [Pelliot, Paul] - 1996

Paris: London: Reunion des Musees Nationaux; Serindia, 1996. First edition Two volumes, folio, pp.372, 446, 767 illustrations, 481 in colour, 7 plans; [with] English translation in 4to, pp.235. 600 sets were issued, but only 250 copies of the English text. A very good set in original cloth, slipcases. A superb production to match Whitfield's earlier work on the Stein Collections in the British Museum. The first two volumes are in French, the third provides a complete English translation. The Pelliot Collection of the Musee Guimet, unlike other great archaeological collections from Central Asia, was the result of a single expedition which took place between 1906 and 1909. The aims of this expedition were "to contribute to the research already undertaken by the Russians, English, Germans and Japanese on the Buddhism of these regions (Kashgaria) prior to the Islamic conquest". These volumes contain papers on The Pelliot Expedition and The Pictorial Language of Dunhuang by Jacques Giès, an Analytical Table of Pigments by Jean-Paul Rioux, and The Silks of Dunhuang by Krishna Riboud, as well as a full compliment of illustrations of the objects collected at Dunhuang, Tumshuq, Kucha and elsewhere, with detailed descriptions. This set is very heavy - shipping quoted on request.