"The Explorations of Captain James Cook in the Pacific as told by Selections of his own Journals 1768-1779", Edited by A. Grenfell Price; illustrated by Geoffrey C. Ingleton. Printed in Australia, 1958 First Heritage Press Edition.

Frontispiece is plaque by Flaxman, 1784, in the British Museum; Ingleton illustrations for this volume consist of 20 drawings for each of the Chapter Headings; 6 full-page drawings for the introductions & endings of each of the three voyages; 6 additional in-text full-page drawings; & many marginal drawings scattered through the text.

James Cook, the Scotland-born British naval commander who rose from humble beginnings to pilot three great eighteenth-century voyages of discovery in the then practically uncharted Pacific. His explorations of the eastern coastline of Australia, leading to its eventual British colonization; his thorough charting of New Zealand, discovery of the Hawaiian Island, and his investigation of both the mythical 'Terra Incognita' in the Southern Ocean and the equally mythical Northwest Passage, as well as his contributions to cartography and to the cure and prevention of sea disease were all of immense scientific and political significance. Though lacking in formal education, Cook was a man of great intelligence and unbounded curiosity, and his journals reflect a wide-ranging interest in everything from island customs to specific problems of navigation, charting, command, and diplomacy.

This selection from Cook's journals, edited by A. Grenfell Price, celebrates the bicentennial anniversary of his explorations. It abounds in descriptions of newly discovered plant species, particulars of coastline and land features, details of navigation, and impressions of the various Pacific peoples he encountered. Cook's was a many-faceted genius, able at once to grasp the complexities of mathematics necessary for navigation and mapping and the subtle intricacies of politics and negotiation.
His tragic death at the hands of Hawaiian islanders is fully rendered from eyewitness accounts, and the implications of his discoveries to the expansion of scientific knowledge are clearly presented by the editor.
Although Cook's journals will prove of inestimable value to historians, anthropologists, and students of the history of science, they can be enjoyed equally as lively narratives of high adventure and discovery. Any sympathetically roving imagination will take unbounded delight in this great classic of exploration by a most curious and restless son of Earth.

US: Priority (c 2-4 days) -------- $8.50
Canada: Priority (c 2-7 weeks) --- $27.50
World: Priority (c 2-8 weeks) ---- $37.50

Original slipcase, hard boards, faux- leather spine; 10.3/4" x c. 7.3/4"; the endpapers are maps of the Pacific; 292 pages, very good /fine binding and condition.