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A Complete and Rare FIRST EDITION Set of the Official Accounts of Cook's Three Pacific Voyages. Published 1773 - 1784. Contemporary Calf, Atlas rebacked. (1)* An Account of the Voyages undertaken by the order of his Present Majesty for Making Discoveries in the Southern Hemisphere. Three Volumes, complete.* (2)* Voyage Towards the South Pole, Two Volumes, complete. (3)* A Voyage to the Pacific Ocean undertaken, by the Command of his Majesty, for making discoveries in the Northern Hemisphere. Three Volumes, complete.* Cook's 1st voyage was designed to observe the transit of Venus across the sun from the Southern Hemisphere, determine the distance between the sun and the earth and continue Byron's exploration. On completion of those tasks, Cook charted for the first time the Society Islands, New Zealand & the east coast of Australia (naming New South Wales). The other narratives include Byron's voyage to the Gilbert & Tuamotu Islands, Wallis's discovery of Tahiti & Moorea and Carteret's discovery of Pitcairn Island after his separation in a storm from Capt. Wallis. SECOND VOYAGE. Cook, James. Voyage Towards the South Pole, and Round the World performed in H.M.S. the Resolution and Adventure in the years 1772, 73, 74 & 1775. written by James Cook, Commander of the Resolution. In which is included Captain Furneaux's narrative of his proceedings in the Adventure during the separation of the ships.The main objective of the 2nd voyage was to circumnavigate the world as far south as possible in search of the Great Southern Land. In doing so, the Resolution & Adventure became the first ships to cross the Antarctic circle, in Jan. 1773. Cook crossed the Antarctic circle twice more and achieved the 71 S, a record that was to last for 50 years. On this voyage Cook pioneered the use of sauerkraut as a dietary supplement to prevent scurvy, he succeeded, losing only four of his 112 man crew and none from scurvy. This was regarded as a great maritime feat on its own. During this voyage, Cook played his part in furthering the great longitude debate. An accurate way to determine longitude had long been a goal of all seafaring nations. English clockmaker John Harrison was a mechanical genius who invented a clock that would carry the true time from the home port, thereby enabling the calculation of the ships' longitude. Cook carried four watches with him, the principal one named "K-1," which he frequently complimented in the log of the Resolution, calling it "our trusty friend the Watch," and "our never failing guide, the Watch." With its help, he made the first, and highly accurate, charts of many newly discovered South Pacific islands. This is also the only account of any of his voyages that Cook himself wrote. THIRD VOYAGE. Cook, James & King, James. Voyage to the Pacific Ocean undertaken, by the Command of his Majesty, for making discoveries in the Northern Hemisphere to determine the Position and Extent of the West Side of North America; In his Majesty's Ships the Resolution and Discovery. In the Years 1776, 1777, 1778, 1779, and 1780.(4)* Folio Atlas with the 61 copper-engraved plates & the two large folding maps. "Captain Cook's three great voyages form the basis for any collection of Pacific books. In three voyages Cook did more to clarify the geographical knowledge of the southern hemisphere than all his predecessors had done together. He was the first really scientific navigator and his voyages made great contributions to many fields of knowledge" (Hill). The cornerstone of any Pacific voyage collection. These official accounts are the full accounts of the three voyages and are illustrated with impressive engravings based on the works of the official artists, which include Sydney Parkinson, Wm. Hodges and John Webber. At the time of publishing, they were very expensive and the 1st editions were sold out within a few days of publication. Together Nine Volumes. EXCELLENT.
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