Antony, a celebrated orientalist and numismatist, was born, in 1646, at Rollat, near Montdidier, in Picardy. His life shows what may be effected by the love of study, firm resolution, and irreproachable morals. By a rare perseverance in his pursuits, Galland triumphed over the caprices of fortune; by the rectitude and nobleness of his character he was enabled to overcome all the disadvantages of his humble lot. Born of poor parents, he lost his father at the age of four, being the youngest of seven children. But his mother, though reduced to live by the labour of her hands, contrived to place him in the college of Noyon, where the principal and a canon of the cathedral charitably undertook the care and expense of educating young Galland. At the age of fourteen he lost both his benefactors at the same time, and returned to his mother with no other wealth than the knowledge of a little Latin, Greek, and Hebrew, a decided taste for letters, and a firm resolution to apply himself to learning. But as his mother could not of course furnish the means necessary for the completion of his studies, it became necessary to learn a trade and renounce literature. This cruel distraction Galland supported for a year, when, finding it intolerable, he one day set out for Paris, with no other resource than the address of an old relation who was in good circumstances, and that of an ecclesiastic whom he had sometimes seen at the house of the canon of Noyon. The hardship of this resolution created an interest in his favour; the sub-principal of the college of Plessis made him continue his studies at that seminary, and then confided him to the care of M. Petitpied, doctor of the Sorbonne. Anything more fortunate could not have happened to Galland than this last act of kindness, which may be said to have prepared, and indeed ensured the success of his literary career. He now extended his knowledge of Hebrew and the other oriental languages, attended the courses of instruction in the Royal College, and even undertook to make a catalogue of the oriental manuscripts of the Sorbonne. Doctor Petitpied had just placed him in the house of M. Godouin, professor in Marzarin College, when M. de Nointel set out, in 1670, on his embassy to Constantinople, and took along with him young Galland, whose labours and acquirements had already attracted notice. The intention of this minister was to employ Galland in procuring from the Greek churches formal attestations of the articles of their faith, which then formed the subject of a grand controversy between Arnauld and Claude. Galland soon acquired at Constantinople a knowledge of the vulgar Greek, from his long conferences with the Greek prelates, and obtained from them attestations, along with much information on the subjects discussed in France. De La Croix, secretary of the embassy, makes no mention of these researches in his Mémoires; but it may be supposed that he found them useful in the composition of État présent de l'Église Grecque et Moronite, published in 1695, 12mo, and reprinted without any alteration under the title of Turquie Chrétienne. Galland accompanied M. de Nointel in his journey to Jerusalem, and availed himself of the opportunity to copy a great number of inscriptions, and even to remove them, as often as he found it practicable to do so. Of these, Montfaucon has published some fragments in his Paléographie. From Syria Galland returned directly to France, whence he immediately set out again for the Levant with the intention of collecting more medals. In 1679 he undertook a third voyage, being charged by the India company to collect every thing calculated to enrich the cabinet of Colbert; but this commission having ceased in consequence of changes which took place in the company, Colbert, and, after his death, Louvois, instructed Galland to continue his researches, and caused the title of antiquary to the king to be conferred on him. At the moment when he was about to embark at Smyrna to return to his native country, he was on the point of perishing in an earthquake. The house which he occupied fell, and buried him in the ruins, under which he remained until next day, breathing with difficulty through accidental openings in the rubbish. On his return to Paris, Thévenot, keeper of the king's library, and D'Herbelot, the celebrated oriental scholar, availed themselves of his labours. But death having soon deprived him of both these learned men, he attached himself to Bignon, a zealous protector of men of letters, whom he also lost the following year. It appears to have been the fortune of Galland continually to lose those useful protections which acknowledged merit is sometimes long in obtaining; but such was the esteem inspired by his attainments and his character, that death no sooner deprived him of one support than he found another. Foucault, intendant of Lower Normandy, supplied the place of Bignon, and received Galland into his house, where, in the midst of a fine library, and a numerous collection of medals, he applied himself to the composition of different works, in which he turned to account his knowledge of the Arabic, Persian, and Turkish languages, with which he had rendered himself familiar during his residence in the East. In 1701, he was admitted into the Academy of Inscriptions, although he resided at Caen; in 1706 he returned to take up his habitation in Paris; and, three years afterwards, he obtained the chair of Arabic in the Royal College of France. This learned man terminated his laborious, useful, and irreproachable life, on the 17th of February 1715, at the age of sixty-nine. The following is a list of his printed works: 1. Trois Lettres touchant la critique M. de Guillet, sur le Voyage de Grèce de Spon, printed in the reply of Spon, Lyons, 1679, in 12mo; 2. Paroles remarquables, bons mots, et maximes des Orientaux, traduits de leurs ouvrages Arabes, Persans, et Turcs, avec des remarques, Paris, 1694, in 12mo; 3. Lettres touchant l'Histoire des quatre Gordiens, prouvée par les Médailles, Paris, 1696, in 12mo; 4. Lettre touchant quatre médailles antiques, publiées par le P. Chamillard, Caen, 1697, in 12mo; 5. Lettre touchant la nouvelle explication d'une médaille d'or du cabinet du Roi, Caen, 1698, in 12mo; 6. Lettre sur le même sujet, printed in the Journal des Savants, 15th August 1705; 7. Observations sur quelques médailles de Tétricus le père, et d'autres tirées du cabinet de M. Ballonsceaux, Caen, 1701, in 8vo; 8. De l'origine et du progrès du Café, translated from an Arabic manuscript in the library of the king, Caen, 1699, in 12mo; 9. Les Mille et Une Nuits, contes Arabes, traduits en Français, Paris, in 12 vols. 12mo; 10. Relation de la Mort du Sultan Osman, et du couronnement du Sultan Mustapha, translated from the Turkish, Paris, 1678, in 12mo; 11. Several articles in the Journal de Trévoux; 12. Letters written from Smyrna and Constantinople; 13. Contributions to the Menagiana, as well as to the Bibliothèque Orientale de D'Herbelot, who died before the printing of the work was completed; 14. Ten dissertations and memoirs for the collection of the academy of which he was a member. Since the death of Galland there have been published of his, 1. Contes et Fables Indiennes de Pidpa et de Lokman, Paris, 1724, in 12mo; 2. Dissertation sur une médaille Grecque de l'Empereur Diaduménien, frappée à Ephèse, 1739; 3. Relation de l'esclavage d'un Marchand Français de la ville de Cassis à Tunis, 1809. The manuscripts left by Galland were, 1. Histoire des Princes de la lignée de Tamerlan, depuis le Sultan Abou-Said-Bahadur, jusqu'au Sultan Abou-Said-Kourkan; 2. Histoire Othomane, traduite du Turc de Naïma Effendi; 3. Vocabularium Turcico-Latinum; 4. A translation of the History of Djenguyz-Khan, extracted from the Persian History of Mirkhoud; 5. Catalogue d'écrivains Arabes, Persans, et Turcs; 6. Journal de mon séjour à Constantinople pendant l'année 1672 et 1673; 7. Dictionnaire Numismatique; 8. Relation de ses Voyages; 9. Traduction de l'Alcoran; 10. Nécrologie de la mort des Savants pour chaque jour de l'année de 1500 à 1701; 11. Relation d'un Voyage fait à Constantinople en 1679 et 1680; 12. Etat présent des îles de Samos, de Nicaire, de Patmos, et du Mont Athos; 13. Description de la Ville de Constantinople en 1671 et 1672; 14. Relation des Événemens qui se sont passés à Constantinople en 1671 et 1672.

GALILEON, in naval affairs, a sort of ship or vessel employed by the Spaniards in the commerce of the West Indies.