Lot 173
Voyages.- Cook (Capt. James) [First Voyage].- [Magra (James), attributed to] A Journal of a Voyage round the World, In His Majesty's ship Endeavour..., first edition, first issue, for T. Becket & P.A. De Hondt, 1771; bound with A Description of East Florida, 1769.
Hammer Price: £6,000
Description
Voyages.- Cook (Capt. James) [First Voyage].- [Magra (James), attributed to] A Journal of a Voyage round the World, In His Majesty's ship Endeavour..., first edition, first issue with dedication f., this copy with the two 'Otahitee Vocabulary' leaves bound at end, [Hill 1066; Sabin 16242], for T. Becket & P.A. De Hondt, 1771 bound after [Stork (William)] A Description of East-Florida, with a Journal kept by John Bartram of Philadelphia, Botanist to His Majesty for The Floridas..., third edition enlarged, 3 folding engraved maps, title with small library ink-stamp and repair to fore-margin, small ink correction to C3v, I2 repaired tear to head touching couple letters, first map laid down and loose with some tears and portion of loss, other maps with few tears to folds or margins repaired to verso (no image loss), [Sabin 92222], Sold by W. Nicoll & T. Jefferies, 1769, together 2 works in 1 vol., few small marginal defects, occasional small stain, some soiling and light browning, scattered spotting, front free endpapers loose, 19th century library half morocco, modern sticker to spine foot, some wear to joints and extremities, 4to.
⁂ The first published account of Cook's first voyage to the Pacific, complete with the dedication leaf. A cornerstone of any Cook collection. Public appetite for a detailed narrative encouraged a publishing race, of which this work, published less than three months after the expedition's return to England and almost two years prior to Hawkesworth's authorised version, was the winner. This first issue containing the dedication leaf was swiftly withdrawn following the publicly advertised consternation of the dedicatees, the Admiralty, Joseph Banks and Daniel Solander. Published anonymously, the work is generally attributed to James Magra, an American mid-shipman aboard.
Description
Voyages.- Cook (Capt. James) [First Voyage].- [Magra (James), attributed to] A Journal of a Voyage round the World, In His Majesty's ship Endeavour..., first edition, first issue with dedication f., this copy with the two 'Otahitee Vocabulary' leaves bound at end, [Hill 1066; Sabin 16242], for T. Becket & P.A. De Hondt, 1771 bound after [Stork (William)] A Description of East-Florida, with a Journal kept by John Bartram of Philadelphia, Botanist to His Majesty for The Floridas..., third edition enlarged, 3 folding engraved maps, title with small library ink-stamp and repair to fore-margin, small ink correction to C3v, I2 repaired tear to head touching couple letters, first map laid down and loose with some tears and portion of loss, other maps with few tears to folds or margins repaired to verso (no image loss), [Sabin 92222], Sold by W. Nicoll & T. Jefferies, 1769, together 2 works in 1 vol., few small marginal defects, occasional small stain, some soiling and light browning, scattered spotting, front free endpapers loose, 19th century library half morocco, modern sticker to spine foot, some wear to joints and extremities, 4to.
⁂ The first published account of Cook's first voyage to the Pacific, complete with the dedication leaf. A cornerstone of any Cook collection. Public appetite for a detailed narrative encouraged a publishing race, of which this work, published less than three months after the expedition's return to England and almost two years prior to Hawkesworth's authorised version, was the winner. This first issue containing the dedication leaf was swiftly withdrawn following the publicly advertised consternation of the dedicatees, the Admiralty, Joseph Banks and Daniel Solander. Published anonymously, the work is generally attributed to James Magra, an American mid-shipman aboard.