The Lusiad; or, the Discovery of India.

An epic poem. Translated from the original Portuguese of Luis de Camoëns. Oxford : printed by Jackson and Lister for J. New [and others], 1778. Second English edition. Quarto, recent half crushed burgundy morocco, spine in compartments with raised bands, ornamental gilt tooling, contrasting title label to spine, new endpapers, preliminary blank, etched frontispiece by J. Mortimer, title leaf (some offsetting); dedication leaf; pp. ccxxxvi; 496, folding map charting Vasco da Gama’s voyage; occasional light foxing, a very good copy.

An important edition of Camoens’ epic poem, adapted with poetic license by Mickle, who includes a critique of Adam Smith’s Wealth of Nations in his lengthy introduction. First published in 1572, it is widely regarded as the most important work in Portuguese-language literature. The poem celebrates the discovery of a sea route to India by the Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama (1469-1524).