Henri de Feynes

Exact and Curious survey by Henri de Feynes, 1615.

Henri de Feynes, Comte de Monfart, Monsart or Montfort, was a 17th-century French explorer and adventurer who was the first Frenchman to visit China.[1] He may have been sent on a secret mission by King Henry IV.[1] Henri de Feynes arrived in China in 1609, after three years travelling on land and on the seas.[1] He finally reached the city of Canton.[1]

Henri de Feynes published an account of his journey in London in 1615.[2] His book was then published in French in 1630. Long thought to be a charlatan, corroboration having been found from contemporaries Jean Mocquet and François Pyrard, his account is now recognised as genuine.[3]

Works

  • Henri de Feynes An exact and curious suruey of all the East Indies, euen to Canton 1615, London [1]
  • Henri de Feynes Voyage par terre depuis Paris jusques à la Chine (Paris, 1630)

See also

Notes

  1. ^ a b c d Orientalism in early Modern France 2008 Ina Baghdiantz McAbe, p.79, ISBN 978-1-84520-374-0
  2. ^ Arab sources of European notions about Chinese porcelain clay
  3. ^ Lach, Donald F; van Kley, Edwin J (1993). Asia in the Making of Europe. Vol. III. University of Chicago Press. pp. 554, 842. ISBN 0226467546.

References