Vancouver, George. 1757-1798. A Voyage of Discovery to the North Pacific Ocean, and Round the World; in which the Coast of North-West America has been Carefully Examined and Accurately Surveyed. London: G.G. and J. Robinson, and J. Edwards, 1798. 3 volumes (only - lacking atlas). 4to (295 x 230 mm). Half-titles, 6 (of 18) engraved plates, with an additional 9 supplied in facsimilie. Early 20th-century library cloth, red morocco lettering pieces on spines. Without atlas, cloth worn, library markings (numbers on spines, bookplates, stamps), 10 plates lacking, all but one supplied in facsimile, some dampstaining, browning and offsetting. FIRST EDITION OF THE ACCOUNT OF 'ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT VOYAGES EVER MADE IN THE INTERESTS OF GEOGRAPHICAL KNOWLEDGE' (Hill). Without atlas. Vancouver, a veteran of Cook's second and third voyages, was placed at the helm of the expedition and charged with securing for Britain lands in the Pacific Northwest granted to it by the Nootka Convention, as well as with exploring the coastline between 30 and 60 degrees latitude in hopes of discovering the long-sought Northwest Passage connecting the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. Beginning in England and proceeding around the Cape of Good Hope, the expedition made stops in New Zealand, King George's Sound (discovered and named by Vancouver), Tahiti, the Hawaiian Islands, San Diego, Monterey, and San Francisco, among other places, before continuing further up the Northwest coast to Nootka Sound and the island which now bears Vancouver's name. Following Vancouver's death in 1798, his brother John completed preparation of the present work for publication with the assistance of Peter Puget, himself a member of the expedition. Cowan judges Vancouver's account 'superior to any of its kind, and constitut[ing] the chiefest source of authority of that period' (pp 654-5). Hill p 304; Howes V23; Sabin 98443; Zamorano Eighty 77. Lot to be sold without reserve. This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ¤ ¤ Unless indicated by the ¤ symbol next to the lot number (or bearing an explicit statement such as 'No Reserve' or 'Without Reserve'), which denotes no reserve, all lots in the catalog are subject to a reserve. The reserve is the minimum hammer price that the seller is willing to accept for a lot. This amount is confidential and does not exceed the low estimate value. For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com For further information about this lot please visit the lot listing