[Medicine] A compleat history of druggs, written in French by monsieur Pomet,

chief druggist to the present French king; to which is added what is further observable on the same subject, from messrs. Lemery, and Tournefort, divided into three classes, vegetable, animal and mineral; with their use in physick, chymistry, pharmacy and several other arts: illustrated with above four hundred copper cutts curiously done from life (...). A work of very great use and curiosity. Done into English from the originals. London, printed for R. Bonwick etc., 1712, 2 parts in one vol., (16),224; (20),225-419,(12) p., with many illustrations on 86 (folding) engraved plates, modern faux-leather, 4to.

Plates partly trimmed short, e.g. affecting the numbering and placing information; furthermore several plates in vol. 2 tanned and one with repaired tear; text occ. sl. tanned/ soiled. Acceptable copy of the relatively rare first English edition, a translation of Histoire générale des drogues, published in 1694 and thus one of the earliest works on the subject. The work mostly describes the more curious qualities of the aforementioned drugs. Pages 216-218 discuss opium and laudanum and mostly their consumption by the Turks, but also chocolate (p. 131) and coffee (p. 129) are treated. The part on animals also discusses fictional animals such as unicorns and dragons.