Itinerarium D. Beniaminis cum versione et notis Constantini L'Empereur ab Oppyck...

Leiden: Elzevir, 1633. First bilingual edition. Very Good. Octavo (16 cm).; [48], 234, [22] pages. Woodblock initials and vignettes. In marbled boards, circa 1900, renewed endleaves, spine artlessly reinforced in cloth, worn at edges. Paper label apparently original. Provenance: Salomon Jakob Florsheim (exlibris). Some light foxing. Reference: Willems 377; Blackmer 120.

Hebrew text of "Ma'asot shel rabi Benjamin," accompanied by a Latin translation. This "travelogue" (first published in Hebrew in 1543 and in Latin in 1575) recounts the author's journey through the Middle East and Central Asia in the 12th century. Da Tudela traveled from Spain through southern France, Italy, Greece, Constantinople, Cyprus, Palestine, Egypt, on to Baghdad, and visited many of the local Jewish communities. He is remembered as the most important traveler of Jewish origin in the Middle Ages. The narrative is an prime source for the history of the Jewish traditions in the Mediterranean area. He even described the lighthouse of Alexandria (collapsed in 1326), one of the seven wonders of the ancient world.