The first edition in English of the Koran. 4to. [24], 407, [17]. Full contemporary sheep, ruled in blind. A very good, unsophisticated copy in a contemporary binding, quite rubbed, with some wear to the covers and spine. Small hole to B1.

The first edition in English of the Quran. This edition, printed in quarto in 1649, precedes, is rarer than, and is preferable to, the entirely reset octavo printing of the same year.
On the 29th December 1648, a book was entered onto the register of the Stationer's Company titled The Turkish Alcoran, &c. This caused something of a stir, and in March 1649 the House Of Commons received a petition from a disgruntled ex-army officer stating that such a book was being printed in London, that it was near completion, and that the House should seize the book and "have it burnt". The matter was passed to the Council Of State, who questioned those involved in the book's publication, and seem to have decided against banning the book's publication.
However, as a result of this affair, when copies went on sale a month later the title page did not bear the name of the printer or bookseller, the translator of the work is not named, and Alexander Ross's 'Needful Caveat' notes the controversy, "I know the publication of the Alcoran may be... scandalous to the higher powers, who notwithstanding have cleared themselves by disliking the publishing, and questioning the publishers thereof" (Ee1-Ee2).
The first vernacular translation of the Quran out of Arabic was in 1647, when André du Ryer published his edition in French. This was translated into English and published in the present edition two years later. The identity of the translator is not known, and has been the subject of recent academic debate. The only named contributor to the present edition is Alexander Ross, who authored the book's final section, 'A needfull Caveat or Admonition for them who desire to know what use may be made of, or if there be danger in reading the Alcoran'.
The precedence of this quarto edition is long established, but it is also significantly rarer in modern commerce. Of the fifteen copies located in auction records of the past decade, just three copies were in quarto.
A direct translation from Arabic into English would not appear for nearly a century, when George Sale's edition was published in 1734.

PROVENANCE: Ralph Grey, Baron Grey of Werke (1630-1675), ownership inscription to title page; by descent to one "R.W. Grey", bookplate with the family motto "De bon vouloir, servir le Roy" to front pastedown.

Wing K747.
'The 1649 English Translation Of The Koran: Its Origins And Significance', Noel Malcolm (Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes, Vol. 75 (2012)),

Stock ID: 44480