The world is indebted to the late Professor Karl Friedrich Neumann, for having rendered the perusal of Johann Schiltberger’s travels generally accessible. Until his edition of the Heidelberg MS. appeared, in 1859, there had been no publication of the interesting work, in its integrity, since the year 1700, the supposed date of an edition, sine anno, sine loco; so that, as a fact, the work had become scarce, and could be consulted in a few libraries only, or in private collections of rare books. In 1813, and again in 1814, was published Abraham Jacob Penzel’s edition of what was known as the Nuremberg MS.; but its sole merit consisted in the insertion of Proper and Geographical names in their original orthography, the work being otherwise vitiated by its modern and paraphrased style, and by the introduction of passages, of which Schiltberger never could have been the author.

Scheiger1 condemns this book as being written in a very extraordinary and uncommonly empty style, in which the narrative of the honest old Bavarian drags itself along very uncouthly. Tobler2 stigmatises it as being an unhappy translation into modern German, with no Introduction; and Neumann,3 a still severer critic, says:—“This edition, in its modern garb, does honour to nobody. The additions to the original text are absurd, and testify to the editor’s ignorance of Schiltberger’s character, and of the times in which he lived. Take, for instance, the following sentence, with which Penzel concludes the author’s address to the reader:—‘Just as the doctor smears with honey the glass of physic prepared for a sick child, so have I also, as an agreeable pastime, introduced here and there some wonderful stories which, I flatter myself, will prove agreeable and instructive reading.’” Neumann might have added, that Penzel was not even the originator of the idea conveyed in this passage, evidently borrowed from Tasso!

In 1823 these travels were again published, in 8vo., at Munich; but this is a copy of which it would seem that very little is known.

Judging by the numerous editions of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, each issue being an almost exact transcript of the copy that preceded it, Schiltberger must have been a popular author during that period. One long blank occurs from 1557 to 1606, after which the book of travels was not again reprinted until 1700.

The version now offered is a literal translation of Neumann’s edition in mittelhoch Deutsch, an exact transcript of the Heidelberg MS., with the exception of a few errors that have been rectified, and slight alterations in the headings of some chapters. Neumann believes his book to be the first printed edition that faithfully represents what Schiltberger wrote, the wording in all previous editions having been changed to suit the language of the times. He has added an Introduction and Notes by himself, and Notes by Fallmerayer and Hammer-Purgstall; such of those Notes as are referred to in the new Notes at the end of this volume, appear in their proper places at foot in the text, each bearing the initial of the writer.

Koehler4 finds fault very unsparingly with Neumann, whom he reproaches with neglect in not correcting and elucidating the wording of the text. Tobler, on the contrary, considers Neumann’s work more acceptable than Penzel’s unfortunate translation into modern German, because there is an Introduction, and the Oriental names employed by the author are explained.

The travels of Johann Schiltberger had never been translated into any tongue until Professor Bruun’s edition, in Russian, appeared at Odessa in 1866; although a somewhat free interpretation of the original, it has been of no small assistance to me where passages in the old German seemed obscure, as also in the identification of names. I am under a deep sense of gratitude to that learned gentleman, for having enriched my translation with a large number of most valuable and interesting Notes. They were supplied to me in French, and to ensure their faithful reproduction, my MS. in the first instance, and the proofs afterwards, were sent to Odessa, for the Professor’s corrections or alterations, and approval.

I have to express my thanks to Aly Bey Riza, Cadri Bey, and Rassek Bey of Alexandria, for their kind aid in simplifying the Turkish and Arabic sentences that occur in various chapters; to Mr. Mnatzakan Hakhoumoff, of Shousha, for making clear to me the several phrases in Armenian; and to Dr. Niccolo Quartano de Calogheras, of Corfu, for his explanation of customs and rites as they are now observed in the Greek Church. I am also desirous of acknowledging the courtesy of those gentlemen who have been good enough to reply to my enquiries, for information that would assist me in compiling a Bibliography of existing editions of Schiltberger’s travels; and it gives me much pleasure to name the Rev. Leo Alishan, Venice; Dr. K. A. Barack, Strasburg; the Rev. A. Baumgarten, at the KremsmÜnster near Wels; Mr. A. Bytschkoff, St. Petersburg; Mr. E. FÖrstemann, Dresden; Mr. A. GutenÆker, Munich; M. Edouard Hesse, Paris; Professor Heyd, Stuttgard; Dr. M. Isler, Hamburg; Mr. J. Kraenzler, Augsburg; Professor Lepsius, Berlin; Dr. J. E. A. Martin, Jena; Dr. Noack, Giessen; Dr. Joh. Priem, Nuremberg; Dr. E. Ritter von Birk, Vienna; Dr. G. T. Thomas, Munich; and Professor Karl Zangemeister, Heidelberg; also the Principal Librarian of the public library at Frankfort, and of the Bibliotheca Medicea-Laurentiana at Florence. I have likewise to express my obligations to Colonel Yule, for some useful and timely hints, so readily given.

Many of the Proper and Geographical names that occur in the Notes, and they are very numerous, are spelled as they ordinarily appear in English works, the orthography of the rest being in accordance with their pronunciation by a Persian and an Armenian gentleman, who did me the favour to settle my doubts. It being impossible to produce certain sounds with vowels that are so variously pronounced in the English language, I have had recourse to giving a phonetic value to various letters, in some instances accentuating the word for the sake of stress, with the acute or grave accent as in the Greek. The apostrophe ’ denotes an independent but rather soft breathing of a letter.

London,
LonJuly 18th, 1879.