[GEOGRAPHY / TWO TEXTBOOKS FOR THE AMERICAN BOARD COLLEGES IN TURKEY] 1. Hamarrot dasagirk’ ashkharhagroit’ean.... [i.e., A concrete textbook on geography with answers to the questions of the second type] &

1. ՀԱՄԱՌՕՏ ԴԱՍԱԳԻՐՔ ԱՇԽԱՐՀԱԳՐՈԻԹԵԱՆ ՀԱՐՑՄԱՄԲ ԵԻ ՊԱՏԱՍԽԱՆԻՈՎ Ի ՊԷԾ ԳՊՐՈՑԱՑ ԵՐԿՐՈՐԳ ՏԻՊ / Hamarrot dasagirk’ ashkharhagroit’ean harts’mamb yev pataskhaniov I pets gpros’ats yerkrorg tip. [i.e., A concrete textbook on geography with answers to the questions of the second type].  

N. A.

Agop Boyadjian Printing House, Constantinople, 1881.

Original quarter black calf. Title gilt to the front board. Small 4to. (24,5 x 19 cm). In Armenian. [4], 136 p., 78 unnumbered woodcuts, 12 b/w engraved maps of 1. Double-paged Mappamondo includes Americas with other continents, 2. Europe, 3. Asia, 4. Doubled-paged Asiatic Turkey, 5. Balkan Peninsula including Greece, Serbia & Montenegro, Romania and European Turkey (this includes an errata flap listing revised place names, such as Larissa - Notably, Armenian speakers have sometimes referred to Turkey as "Tajikia”), 6. West Europe, 7. England & British Isles, 8. Africa, 9. North & Central America, 10. Double-paged United States of America), 11. South America, 12. Australia & New Zealand. Armenian ownership inscriptions on the front pastedown, a cut of drawing of a soldier on his horse pasted on the frontispiece, and an ex-libris pasted to the rear pastedown. Light stains on boards, light wear to top of the spine, edge wear, some fading and foxing on the pages. Overall, a good copy.

The exceedingly rare first (and apparently only and unrecorded) Armenian geography textbook, prepared and printed in the Boyadjian Printing House which was one of the leading Armenian printing houses in the Ottoman Istanbul, for use in lectures at the American Board Colleges in Turkey.

As of February 2025, we couldn’t trace any copies in OCLC, KVK.

2. ԸՆԴԱՐՋԱԿ ՊԱՏԿԵՐԱՋԱՐԴ ԱՇԽԱՐՀԱԳՐՈԻԹԻՒՆ / Yndarjak patkerajard ashkharhagroit’iwn [i.e., Concise illustrated geography].

MANISSADJIAN, H[OVHANNES] H[AGOP] (1862-1942).

H. Matteosian, Constantinople, 1902.

Original light brown full cloth. Title gilt to the front board with a decorative border. Small 4to. (24,5 x 19 cm). In Armenian. [14], 174, [2] p., 52 woodcuts, 11 b/w engraved maps. Ownership inscription on verso of the title page, a tear without effect to text on the title page. Light stains on boards, light wear to top of the spine, edge wear, small tears on two pages without missing, some fading and foxing on the pages. Overall, a good copy.

The exceedingly rare first (and apparently only and unrecorded) enlarged edition of the Boyadjian’s geography textbook, authored by Armenian botanist, linguist, and geographer Manissadjian, for use in lectures particularly at the American Board College in Merzifon. In the author's preface, it is also mentioned that he was preparing a new atlas, and for this edition, the engraving plates were recast to make the maps more functional.

Right after the preface, the book presents an index of geographical place names and terms. This is followed by errata, leading into the first chapter, which serves as an introduction to the science of geography. The book includes the following maps: 1. Double-paged Mappamondo includes Americas with other continents, 2. Europe, 3. Balkan Peninsula including Greece, Serbia & Montenegro, Romania and European Turkey, 4. West Europe, 5. England & British Isles, 6. Asia, 7. Africa, 8. Australia & New Zealand 9. North & Central America, 10. South America 11. One folded Asiatic Turkey - Notably, Armenian speakers have sometimes referred to Turkey as "Tajikia”). Additionally, the book contains 52 numbered, attractive woodcut illustrations.

Geography was one of the subjects emphasized at Anadolu College, with the school's guides listing language proficiency (reading and writing in both the native language and Turkish), along with knowledge of geography and arithmetic, as entrance requirements.

AMERICAN COLLEGE MUSEUM CATALOGUE BY MANISSADJIAN: One of the most significant contributions of the American College in Merzifon to the history of science is the catalogue of the Anatolia College Museum, which was established in Merzifon as a result of missionary activities. This catalogue was prepared by the museum’s curator, scientist, botanist, and plant collector, Professor Johannes ‘John’ Jacob Manissadjian (Agop Manisaciyan). Manissadjian compiled this catalogue in 1918, foreseeing the museum’s destruction after the Genocide. Therefore, it is not merely a cataloguing effort but also serves as a record of catastrophe. Over time, the museum’s collection, which housed more than seven thousand specimens, was scattered across the world; today, only a very small portion of it is known to be located. An alphabetical list of the contents of the displays at the Anatolia College Museum in Merzifon. Also includes a brief history of the museum. The items are described in various categories, including taxidermy, fossils, plant samples, insect samples, mineral samples, skeletons, etc.

Manissadjian’s envisioned museum was informed by his extensive student-oriented fieldwork expeditions in the Anatolian landscape as he carried out scientific studies in biology, geography, geology, and archaeology. By 1915, the museum registered more than 7,000 specimens from the Jurassic to the contemporary world, from local areas and through international exchanges. After surviving the Genocide, Manissadjian surreptitiously returned in 1917 to then-militarized Marzovan (Merzifon). His aim was to create a single, detailed, handwritten inventory of this museum, which he completed by 1918 before permanently leaving the Ottoman Empire. This catalogue represents Manissadjian’s last curatorial act becoming his first archival act.

Manissadjian was Armenian-born scientist and linguist died in Detroit.

AMERICAN BOARD SCHOOL IN MERZIFON: The Anatolia College in Merzifon or American College of Mersovan (Turkish: Merzifon Amerikan Koleji) was a 4-year college, high school, theological seminary, orphanage and hospital located in the town of Merzifon in the Sivas Vilayet of the Ottoman Empire (in modern-day Amasya Province, Turkey). Classes were offered to both male and female students. Established by American missionaries, the college existed from 1886 to 1924. The college was essentially destroyed by the Armenian genocide in 1915. Closed until 1919, it was subsequently relocated to Thessaloniki, Greece, and still operates as Anatolia College.

In 1886, as more and more young people wanted a general education, the program at the theological seminary in Merzifon was expanded to include a four-year liberal arts college. The institution was named Anatolia College, and Charles Tracy became the first president, serving until 1912. By 1911 six languages were regularly taught and used in the college, and that year 282 students attended from 16 provinces of Turkey, as well as Greece, Crete, Cyprus, Egypt, and Russia. The faculty, in which Americans formed a minority, exercised substantial direction over the academic program. The college's motto was "The Morning Cometh" referring to the ancient Greek word for dawn, as well as the region "Anatolia". The college seal showed the sun rising over lofty Akdağ at the eastern end of the Merzifon Plain. Students, principally Greek and Armenian, came most from outside of Merzifon and boarded at the school. The faculty was Greek, Armenian, and American. The half-German J. J. Manissadijan was Professor of Botany and also founded a college museum.

During 1911 - 15 multiple new buildings were added, including North College in 1912; the Alumni Library-Museum in 1914; and the Kennedy Home and Superintendent's House in 1915. A deep well and water system, including a Turkish bath used by hundreds every week, and a large flour mill and granaries, along with residential units, were also in place by 1915. Foundations were built for the Union Hall and George Hills White Hall (mentioned in the preface by the Manissadjian) but never finished. The library grew to include 10,000 books and 40 periodicals. (Wikipedia).

(Sources: Tuglaci, Pars: Tarih boyunca Bati Ermenileri, 2 volumes; WorldCat; SALT online).

We couldn’t find any institutional holdings in OCLC.