Iesus. Cartas que los padres y hermanos de la Compañia de Iesus, que andan en los reynos de Iapon escriuieron a los de la misma Compañia,

desde el año de mil y quinientos y quare[n]ta y nueue, hasta el de mil y quinientos y setenta y uno : en las quales se da noticia de las varias costumbres y idolatrias de aquella gentilidad : y se cuenta el principio y successo y bondad de los Christianos de aquellas partes. En Alcala : En casa de Iuan Iñiguez de Lequerica, 1575. Quarto (200 x 140 mm), contemporary limp vellum (light staining), manuscript title to spine; ff [10] comprising title leaf, printer’s license leaf signed by Gonçalo Pumarejo with date of 25 November 1575 (not noted by Cordier), errata leaf (bound at front instead of rear), permission leaf, dedication leaf, Proemio al lector (two leaves), Prologo leaf, and Indulgencias (two leaves); 315; [4] (instead of 6, as it comprises the Tabla only, the errata leaf being bound with the preliminaries while the colophon leaf, with its vignette woodcut of the Crucifixion to verso, is lacking altogether); woodcut historiated initials; f.72v with woodcut Japanese characters; title leaf with some marginal restoration to worm tracks, occasional browning, but very good throughout; housed in a morocco clamshell box.

A Spanish translation, augmented with additional material, of Cartas que os padres e Irmãos de Companhia de Iesus … (Coimbra, 1570). This is the first Spanish edition of a collection of 82 letters written by missionaries of the Society of Jesus from Japan between 1549 and 1571. Folios 1-30 comprise a life of Francis Xavier: La vida del padre maestro Francisco Xauier … Y relacion de las cosas de la India, que imp imprimio en latin Manuel de Acosta … Traduxose en Castellano, which is not contained in the 1570 edition. The present edition also has an additional 10 letters, written between 1567 and 1571, as well as a brief account of the islands of Japan.

Cordier, Japonica, 67-68; Palau, 46311; Carayon, 591