xxiii. [1], 212 pp; errata leaf. With 28 copper-engraved plates including 28 views from drawings by Parkinson; frontispiece portrait of Parkinson; map of New Zealand. (large 4to) 33.2x27 cm. (13x10½"), modern full paneled calf in the style of the 18th century, raised spine bands, morocco lettering piece, slipcase. First Edition, large paper issue.
Account of the first expedition under the command of Captain Cook, 1768-1771. An apprentice draper from Edinburgh, Parkinson came to the attention of Sir Joseph Banks for his ability to draw "flowers, and other objects of natural history," and the latter engaged Parkinson as botanical artist on the first voyage of Cook to the Pacific. The present work is one of the most handsome of the unofficial accounts of the voyage; it contains extensive accounts of New Zealand and Australia, is the first work to identify the kangaroo by name, and is superbly illustrated by engravings after Parkinson, who was, incidentally, the first professional artist to set foot on Australian soil. Parkinson contracted dysentery on the return voyage, died and was buried at sea; his papers, journals, and drawings were claimed by his brother, Stanfield Parkinson, who prepared them for publication, but a court injunction restrained him from publishing until after the official account of John Hawkesworth. This dispute caused some acrimony, and Hawkesworth retaliated by excluding mention of Parkinson from his compilation, and did not credit him for illustrations or other papers which were employed. The vocabularies at the end of the work, a valuable feature, include the languages of Otaheite, New Zealand, New Holland, Savoo and Sumatra, and Malay.
Condition:
Some soiling to frontispiece and title, offset from plates, minor foxing, spots to pp. 157-8, marginal repair to frontispiece, lacking the final blank; still a very nice, large copy, in handsome binding replicating one of the period.