An Account of Several Late Voyages & Discoveries to the South and North.

£6,250 · Offered by Maggs Bros Ltd · No longer available

Edited by Sir Tancred Robinson, and dedicated to Samuel Pepys, this compilation of four voyages is known chiefly for its inclusion of John Narborough’s account of his voyage through the Straits of Magellan into the Pacific. Robinson’s introduction seeks to place his volume in the context of the likes of Hakluyt and Ramusio and includes a brief history of previous explorers such as Magellan, Drake, Quiros, Schouten, Hawkins, Barentz, Sharp et al. Hill states that this work is of “particular interest because of its description of Narborough’s passage in the Batchelour through the Straits of Magellen and into the South Pacific to Chile, which was much read by later navigators. Narbrough sailed in 1669 with a commission to explore the west coast of the Americas and to look for the western opening of the North-west passage. He also tried to trade in Chile but failed in this endeavour and turned back at Valdivia. His charts of the Strait of Magellan were superior to older ones.” Narborough’s account is 129pp. The work is of added interest as it includes one of the earliest accounts in English of Abel Tasman’s 1642 voyage upon which he discovered both Tasmania and New Zealand. He also made stops at Tonga and Fiji. There are two further accounts. The first is a search for the north-east passage by John Wood, who sought a passage to Asia in 1676. He sailed on the Speedwell and was accompanied by William Flawes on the Properous . Their passage was prevented by pack ice at 75’59N. They

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