Details
SIR WILLIAM EDWARD PARRY (1790-1855)
Journal of a Voyage for the Discovery of a North-West Passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific; Performed in the Years 1819-20, in His Majesty's Ships Hecla and Griper. London: William Clowes for John Murray, 1821. 6 engraved maps by J. Walker after John Bushnan et al., 4 folding, one with folding tipped-on extension flap, 9 aquatint plates by W. Westall after E.W. Beechey and H.P. Hoppner, and 5 etched plates by J. Clark after Beechey. Illustrations, diagrams, and letterpress tables in the text, one table folding. Errata slip tipped onto \Kp\k4v. (Light offsetting onto title and text from maps and plates, one plate trimmed touching imprint, short tear on one folding map, lacking final advertisement leaf z2.) FIRST EDITION. Arctic Bibliography 13145; Brunet IV, cols 387-388; Hill 1311; Lowndes p. 1789; Sabin 58860.
Journal of a Second Voyage for the Discovery of a North-West Passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific; Performed in the Years 1821-22-23, in His Majesty's Ships Fury and Hecla. London: William Clowes for John Murray, 1824. Engraved frontispiece, 14 engraved plates, 2 folding, and 11 aquatint plates, all by E. Finden after G. Lyon, 4 engraved folding plates of coastal profiles by J. Walker after J. Bushnan, 6 engraved maps by J. Walker after J. Bushnan et al., 4 folding, and 3 lithographic maps by C. Hullmandel. Illustrations, diagrams, and letterpress tables in the text. (Light offsetting onto title and text from maps and plates, small paper flaw on 3G2, one folding plate and folding map dust-marked and slightly frayed in margin, one map slightly trimmed, one folding map bisected by the binder's knife, lacking advertisement leaves 4D3-4.) FIRST EDITION. Arctic Bibliography 13142 (including the 1825 'Appendix'); Brunet IV, col. 388; Hill 1312; Lowndes p. 1789; Sabin 58864.
Journal of a Third Voyage for the Discovery of a North-West Passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific; Performed in the Years 1824-25, in His Majesty's Ships Hecla and Fury. London: William Clowes for John Murray, 1826. Engraved frontispiece by E. Finden after H.N. Head, 5 engraved plates by E. Finden after H.P. Hoppner and H.N. Head, one engraved folding plate of coastal profiles by J. & C. Walker after H.N. Head, and 4 engraved maps by J. & C. Walker, one folding. Illustrations, diagrams, and letterpress tables in the text. (Light offsetting onto title and text from maps and plates, short tear and slight creasing on folding map.) Arctic Bibliography 13144 (erroneously calling for 8 plates); Brunet IV, col. 388; Hill 1313; Lowndes p. 1789; Sabin 58867.
[Fourth Voyage] Narrative of an Attempt to Reach the North Pole, in boats ... Attached to His Majesty's Ship Hecla. London: William Clowes for John Murray, 1828. Engraved frontispiece and 3 engraved plates by E. Finden and 3 engraved maps by J. & C. Walker, one folding and finished in colour by hand. Woodcut diagrams and letterpress tables in the text. Retaining 'Directions to the Binder'/errata leaf. (Some light spotting and offsetting.) FIRST EDITION. Arctic Bibliography 13146; Brunet IV, col. 388; Lowndes p. 1789; Sabin 58868.
4 works in 4 volumes, 4° (vols I-III: 266 x 213mm; vol. IV: (270 x 215mm). Vols I-III: uniformly bound in contemporary green calf gilt [one endpaper of vol. I watermarked '1822'], boards with panels stained light green enclosed by dark-green borders blind-tooled with foliate rolls within triple rules, foliate cornerpieces, outer borders of gilt foliate rolls within double gilt rules, spines gilt in compartments, gilt morocco lettering-pieces in one, decorated in blind with foliate tools, marbled edges (somewhat rubbed and scuffed, spines somewhat faded, corners bumped); vol. IV: contemporary calf gilt, boards with central blind-stamped lattice lozenges and gilt floral borders, spine gilt in compartments, gilt morocco lettering-pieces in 2, marbled edges (lightly rubbed, spine rubbed and with splits on joints, hinges re-inforced). Provenance: ED (engraved bookplates with monograms and earl's crown above, vols I-III); Alexander Spiers, Elderslie (bookplate, manuscript pressmarks on bookplate and margin of title, vol. IV).
A FINELY-BOUND SET OF PARRY'S THREE VOYAGES IN SEARCH OF THE NORTH-WEST PASSAGE TOGETHER WITH HIS FOURTH VOYAGE TO THE NORTH POLE. Although none of Parry's three voyages in search of the North-West Passage were successful, each brought further knowledge of the area and resulted in new discoveries. The first took Parry across the 110th meridian, winning him the prize of £5,000 offered by Parliament and raising him to the status of a national hero -- indeed, John Murray paid 1,000 guineas for the publication rights to his first Journal -- and the second and third voyages enlarged upon the first: 'The immediate achievements of these voyages were the charting of hundreds of miles of coastline in the Canadian Arctic archipelago and the collecting of valuable data on Arctic natural history' (Hill 1311). The expedition to the North Pole in 1827 sailed to Treurenburg Bay, Northern West Spitsbergen, and then travelled over the ice with specially-fabricated wheeled boats; however, the party was frustrated by the extreme conditions (and the realisation that the southwards drift of the ice was countering progress towards the Pole), but had, nonetheless achieved 82°45' when they turned back -- the furthest North that any human had travelled, and a record that stood for nearly fifty years. (4)
Journal of a Voyage for the Discovery of a North-West Passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific; Performed in the Years 1819-20, in His Majesty's Ships Hecla and Griper. London: William Clowes for John Murray, 1821. 6 engraved maps by J. Walker after John Bushnan et al., 4 folding, one with folding tipped-on extension flap, 9 aquatint plates by W. Westall after E.W. Beechey and H.P. Hoppner, and 5 etched plates by J. Clark after Beechey. Illustrations, diagrams, and letterpress tables in the text, one table folding. Errata slip tipped onto \Kp\k4v. (Light offsetting onto title and text from maps and plates, one plate trimmed touching imprint, short tear on one folding map, lacking final advertisement leaf z2.) FIRST EDITION. Arctic Bibliography 13145; Brunet IV, cols 387-388; Hill 1311; Lowndes p. 1789; Sabin 58860.
Journal of a Second Voyage for the Discovery of a North-West Passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific; Performed in the Years 1821-22-23, in His Majesty's Ships Fury and Hecla. London: William Clowes for John Murray, 1824. Engraved frontispiece, 14 engraved plates, 2 folding, and 11 aquatint plates, all by E. Finden after G. Lyon, 4 engraved folding plates of coastal profiles by J. Walker after J. Bushnan, 6 engraved maps by J. Walker after J. Bushnan et al., 4 folding, and 3 lithographic maps by C. Hullmandel. Illustrations, diagrams, and letterpress tables in the text. (Light offsetting onto title and text from maps and plates, small paper flaw on 3G2, one folding plate and folding map dust-marked and slightly frayed in margin, one map slightly trimmed, one folding map bisected by the binder's knife, lacking advertisement leaves 4D3-4.) FIRST EDITION. Arctic Bibliography 13142 (including the 1825 'Appendix'); Brunet IV, col. 388; Hill 1312; Lowndes p. 1789; Sabin 58864.
Journal of a Third Voyage for the Discovery of a North-West Passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific; Performed in the Years 1824-25, in His Majesty's Ships Hecla and Fury. London: William Clowes for John Murray, 1826. Engraved frontispiece by E. Finden after H.N. Head, 5 engraved plates by E. Finden after H.P. Hoppner and H.N. Head, one engraved folding plate of coastal profiles by J. & C. Walker after H.N. Head, and 4 engraved maps by J. & C. Walker, one folding. Illustrations, diagrams, and letterpress tables in the text. (Light offsetting onto title and text from maps and plates, short tear and slight creasing on folding map.) Arctic Bibliography 13144 (erroneously calling for 8 plates); Brunet IV, col. 388; Hill 1313; Lowndes p. 1789; Sabin 58867.
[Fourth Voyage] Narrative of an Attempt to Reach the North Pole, in boats ... Attached to His Majesty's Ship Hecla. London: William Clowes for John Murray, 1828. Engraved frontispiece and 3 engraved plates by E. Finden and 3 engraved maps by J. & C. Walker, one folding and finished in colour by hand. Woodcut diagrams and letterpress tables in the text. Retaining 'Directions to the Binder'/errata leaf. (Some light spotting and offsetting.) FIRST EDITION. Arctic Bibliography 13146; Brunet IV, col. 388; Lowndes p. 1789; Sabin 58868.
4 works in 4 volumes, 4° (vols I-III: 266 x 213mm; vol. IV: (270 x 215mm). Vols I-III: uniformly bound in contemporary green calf gilt [one endpaper of vol. I watermarked '1822'], boards with panels stained light green enclosed by dark-green borders blind-tooled with foliate rolls within triple rules, foliate cornerpieces, outer borders of gilt foliate rolls within double gilt rules, spines gilt in compartments, gilt morocco lettering-pieces in one, decorated in blind with foliate tools, marbled edges (somewhat rubbed and scuffed, spines somewhat faded, corners bumped); vol. IV: contemporary calf gilt, boards with central blind-stamped lattice lozenges and gilt floral borders, spine gilt in compartments, gilt morocco lettering-pieces in 2, marbled edges (lightly rubbed, spine rubbed and with splits on joints, hinges re-inforced). Provenance: ED (engraved bookplates with monograms and earl's crown above, vols I-III); Alexander Spiers, Elderslie (bookplate, manuscript pressmarks on bookplate and margin of title, vol. IV).
A FINELY-BOUND SET OF PARRY'S THREE VOYAGES IN SEARCH OF THE NORTH-WEST PASSAGE TOGETHER WITH HIS FOURTH VOYAGE TO THE NORTH POLE. Although none of Parry's three voyages in search of the North-West Passage were successful, each brought further knowledge of the area and resulted in new discoveries. The first took Parry across the 110th meridian, winning him the prize of £5,000 offered by Parliament and raising him to the status of a national hero -- indeed, John Murray paid 1,000 guineas for the publication rights to his first Journal -- and the second and third voyages enlarged upon the first: 'The immediate achievements of these voyages were the charting of hundreds of miles of coastline in the Canadian Arctic archipelago and the collecting of valuable data on Arctic natural history' (Hill 1311). The expedition to the North Pole in 1827 sailed to Treurenburg Bay, Northern West Spitsbergen, and then travelled over the ice with specially-fabricated wheeled boats; however, the party was frustrated by the extreme conditions (and the realisation that the southwards drift of the ice was countering progress towards the Pole), but had, nonetheless achieved 82°45' when they turned back -- the furthest North that any human had travelled, and a record that stood for nearly fifty years. (4)
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