Big Game Hunting Rarities from Prince Elim Pavlovich Demidoff

Much of being a competent bookseller is being a good researcher. Realistically, I don’t have enough time to read every book that passes through the doors of Haerer Books. So, my goal is to quickly absorb as much information as I can from the book itself and various sources. This is particularly important when it comes to ephemera. Notably, even in the case of very rare books, online searches can generally turn up some information. However, for various types of ephemera, such as old letters, it can be nearly impossible to uncover similar results. Such was the case for a unique letter I stumbled upon recently, and with some help, I was able to verify a truly rare find.

Some months ago, I found a letter buried in a lot of material I had purchased. It was written in cursive and dated 1904. On approximately the fourth read, I was able to start identifying most words, whether directly or from context. However, I could not identify the signature. Here were the clues I was able to discern. The writer of the letter was recently a first-time author, publishing a likely trilogy. The books were about a trip. The letter was addressed to ‘Harting’, who had seemingly been on other naturalist or hunting trips with the author. The book or books likely centered around natural history or hunting. Harting had previous experience in authorship and publishing. Although the author noted their heart was in London, they mentioned Russia, and the letter was written in Denmark. 

I initially assumed that ‘Harting’ was James Edmund Harting, a naturalist and ornithologist who authored various works, including ‘Recreations of a Naturalist’ in 1906. I cross-referenced publishers of Harting’s works who published other naturalist and/or hunting books from 1902-1906, and I could not find one authored by someone whose signature matched the one on the letter. I went to international surname databases and searched every letter combination I could think of, but with no luck. Eventually, I posted my ‘clues’ and photos of the three-page letter in the Vintage, Rare, and Antique Books group on Facebook. Within 48 hours, I had a response from a group member who lived in a Russian community in New York City. They suggested that the last name was Demidoff, and that database searches were turning up empty because the traditional Russian form of Demidoff, over time, has evolved to Demidov. Sure enough, they were right. The author was none other than Emil Pavlovich Demidoff (Demidov). 

Demidoff was an interesting figure. He was born in Vienna in 1868 to Princess Maria Meshcherskaya and Pavel Pavlovitch Demidoff, 2nd Prince of San Donato and a notable European industrialist. By 1895, the young Demidoff was considered among the richest men on Earth. He was the Russian Empire’s last ambassador to Greece, where, given his ties to the White Russia movement, he and his wife were exiled.  

With the help of publisher Roland Ward, Demidoff would release a trilogy commemorating these trips: Hunting Trips in the Caucasus (1898), After Wild Sheep in the Altai and Mongolia (1900), and A Shooting Trip to Kamchatka (1904). Notably, Ward was the one who provided the inspiration for these trips, as noted in the preface. Among these titles, we will focus on After Wild Sheep in the Altai and Mongolia, a title currently for sale in our shop.

Demidoff’s foray into hunting began in 1897. As noted in the preface, “It was in the spring of 1897 that, strolling down Piccadilly, my wife and I, on passing the well-known window of Mr. Rowland Ward, were struck by the unusual size and massiveness of some heads of wild sheep which were on view. I think I was never more impressed by any trophies I had seen. I at once decided that the year should not pass before I also would attempt to make a similar bag. Having concluded our preparations in London, we started, my wife and I, for St. Petersburg early in April. Christo, my valet, who accompanied me on this journey, proved very useful in many ways. The Promised Land! I shall never forget this first acquaintance with the grand Altai sheep as long as I live!” This marked that beginning of a series of hunting trips in Asia, best described as ‘roughing it in style’.

The work is considered some of the best writing ever on Asian sheep hunting, and despite his limited experience, Demidoff was considered an exceptional hunter. Demidoff and his wife, accompanied by St. George Littledale, embarked on a shooting expedition to the Altai range. They travelled to the Ob River in Siberia, then on to the Altai. In the Tchagan-Burgaza Valley, Ovis ammon were sighted and bagged. The march continued to Mongolia, crossing the Tchagan-Kol River and into the Olonur Valley and central China to purse argali.Our copy is a stunning first edition in a fine binding. It includes a fold-out color map of the Altai Mountains and Russian-Chinese border with the expedition route marked, in pocket at rear and in exceptional condition. There are photos and illustrations throughout. The book is being sold with the letter, for which I will leave one last note. I do suspect that Harting, as noted above, was none other than James Edmund Harting. It is fairly well documented that Harting and Roland Ward were friends and colleagues, with various dealings stemming to the 1870s. Moreover, their bookplates commonly turn up in each other’s books, providing even deeper provenance. Notably, very few Demidoff letters have ever appeared for sale publicly, making this set incredibly rare and wonderful.