Morit Busch: Bilder aus Griechenland.Trieste 1870. First edition, ROYAL FOLIO, contemporary boards trimmed and slightly rubbed titled Grecia Pittoresca,complete with 19 big lithographs depicting fine views of Greece,ex libris of William St Clair,leading British Hellenist with his manuscript inscription in first page,some light marginal spotting in few pages,overall in very good condition and with fine provenance A vital resource for understanding the Mediterranean maritime routes of the mid-19th century. The fact that this book was published in Trieste is its most defining characteristic. At the time, Trieste was the primary seaport of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the headquarters of the Österreichischer Lloyd,the Austrian Lloyd, the most powerful steamship company in the Levant. Busch’s work was designed to be a highly sophisticated guidebook for the elite passengers of the Austrian Lloyd. The book focuses heavily on the ports and the coastal approach to the Greek world. It captures the experience of arriving in the East via the Austrian route,from Trieste down the Adriatic to Corfu, through the Gulf of Corinth, and finally to Piraeus. His pictures of Greece are sharp and unsentimental.He provides detailed descriptions of the excavations in Athens, but always with an eye toward how the modern traveler experiences them. Because his route often began or stopped in Corfu, he provides excellent documentation of the islands.Very richly illustrated with fine big lithographs of Greek cities and landscapes