Sir Dinshaw Petit was one of the great pioneers of trade & industry from the Parsi community in 19th–century India. He also left an indelible mark as a committed philanthropist who donated generously for a variety of causes. However, a lesser-known facet of his personality was his profound knowledge of plants and their medicinal properties. In fact, he championed the cause of a common mangrove associate — Clerodendrum inerme — from Mumbai's coastal flora as a potent febrifuge and the leaves of this plant came to be known as Petit Fever Leaves. In the year 1898, he published a comprehensive compilation of native medicines in the Gujarati language.
We are now pleased to offer an extremely rare antiquarian First Edition of his rare book on native medicines. The first few pages of this book contain several reviews & testimonials in Gujarati & in English by some of the renowned practitioners of Ayurveda of the time. These are followed by an exhaustive table of contents classified according to the ailment. Multiple remedies were documented for each ailment with detailed formulations of the plant-based ingredients.
Many images of this precious book (including all the pages of the extensive table of contents) are attached herewith for the perusal of those interested.
VAIDAK TOOCHAKA SANGRAH — A Collection of House-hold Native Medicines
Author & Publisher: Sir Dinshaw Manekji Petit
Prefatory reviews by: Dr. Sir Bhalchandra Krishna, M. G. Deshmukh, Popat P. Vaidya, Ardeshir Pestonji Cama, Prabhuram Jivanram Vaidya, Vaidya Jatashankar Vitthal
Printed at: The Gujarati Printing Press, Bombay, 1898 — Extremely Rare Antiquarian First Edition
Pages: vi + 28 + 384 pages. Total no. of pages = 418.
Language: Gujarati. Nine pages of English text (including the English title page).
Format: Hardcover. Professionally bound in contemporary full genuine maroon leather with the titles debossed in golden lettering on the front cover & on the spine.
Size: 21 cm x 14.3 cm x 3 cm
Inscription: This book bears Sir Dinshaw Petit's rubber-stamped gift inscription on the upper margin of a select few pages; image attached.
Condition: Pre-owned. Excellent. Pages clean and unmarked. Binding tight and firm. Slight natural yellowing of the pages owing to age. The margins of a select few pages have been professionally restored/fortified. Being a book that is 126 years old, it is in truly remarkable condition overall. Since this book was a gift from Sir Dinshaw Petit, a tiny paper overlay was affixed on the title page to cover the printed price; image attached.
Remarks: Originally published in 1898, this antiquarian First Edition is extremely rare and hard to find, let alone in such excellent condition as the one we are offering.
Please email us on kumarclassicbookpoint@gmail.com for cost and availability, or for any further queries in order to serve you better. Delivery in Mumbai is free.
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