VELTMAN A.F. (1800-1870) Virginiya, ili Poezdka v Rossiyu: v 2 ch. [Virginia, or A Trip to Russia: in 2 ch.] M.: tip. Selivanovskogo, 1837.

Part 1 – [2], 138 pp.; Part 2 – [4], 163 pp.; 18.5×11 cm. In period half-leather binding. Original decorative publisher's cover. Spine wear, losses of leather fragments along spine edges and corners of covers, minor foxing, library stamp on the verso of the title page. Alexander Fomich Vel'tman (1800-1870) was a Russian cartographer, linguist, archaeologist, poet, and writer. He participated in the Russo-Turkish War of 1828-1829 and held the rank of lieutenant colonel. He served as the head of the Historical Department of the Army’s Main Headquarters (1826-1831) and was the director of the Moscow Armory (1852-1870), as well as a privy councilor. Considered the founder of the historical fantasy genre, Vel'tman was one of the first in world literature to use the concept of time travel. He was the editor and one of the authors of Antiquities of the Russian State, the translator of The Tale of Igor's Campaign, publisher of the almanac Pictures of the World (1836-1837), chief editor of the journal Moskvityanin (1849), and organizer of Moscow literary Thursdays. The novel describes the customs and lifestyle of early 19th-century Russia, comically presenting foreigners’ perceptions and prejudices about Russia. Represents a bibliographic rarity.