Captain James Cook (1728-1779) is best known for his three voyages to the Pacific (1768-71; 1772-75; and 1776-79). His discoveries radically changed the western understanding of the world in the late 18th century. He was the first to circumnavigate and chart New Zealand and provided the earliest European accounts of exploration along the eastern coast of Australia and the Hawaiian Islands. On February 14th, 1779, he was killed on Hawaii after attempting to kidnap the chief of the island.

Many contemporary accounts of Cook’s voyages, including charts and engravings, appeared in the late 18th century. The first official account of Cook’s first voyage was published in 1773 by John Hawkesworth in Volumes II and III of An Account of the Voyages Undertaken by the Order of His Present Majesty for Making Discoveries in the Southern Hemisphere... William Strahan and Thomas Cadell published the first official accounts of the second and third voyages in 1777 and 1784. Accounts of his exploration were subsequently translated into French, German, and Dutch.

This lot includes very early engraved views of Hawaii from Cook's third and final voyage. Cook explored Hawaii before heading north to explore the Pacific coast, where he tracked past the Bering Strait before being turned back by ice. The expedition then sailed south to Hawaii, where Cook was killed in a dispute with the natives at Karakakooa Bay on February 14th, 1779. Clerke, his second-in-command, took over the expedition and they surveyed further in Hawaii before returning north to continue the exploration for the Northwest Passage. Two of the engravings included here depict Cook's death, one from a Dutch edition of the Voyages and the other from a French publication, drawn by de Sainson and engraved by Charles Beyer. The lot also includes a sheet illustrating various Hawaiian views and a sheet showing a Hawaiian war canoe filled with men wearing ceremonial gourd helmets and feather headdresses in the Kealakekua Bay and Captain Cook and officers meeting with natives. A. Dood van J. Cook, from Reizen Rondom de Waereld door James Cook, circa 1795 (14.3 x 8.9"). Condition: Issued folding with some short edge tears and fold separations, most of which have been closed on verso with archival tape. There is a binding trim in the left blank margin and light soiling that is mostly confined to the margins.
B. Vue des Isles Sandwich, by Cook/Benard, from Troisieme Voyage De Cook, ou Voyage a l'Ocean Pacifique..., circa 1785 (15.3 x 7.8"). Condition: On paper with a bunch of grapes watermark, some tiny holes along the centerfold, and a few light spots.
C. A Canoe of the Sandwich Islands, with the Rowers Masked [on sheet with] An Offering Before Captn. Cook in the Sandwich Islands, by Cook/Webber, from Bankes's New System of Geography, circa 1785 (6.9 x 11.0"). Condition: Light soiling, much of it confined to the blank margins.
D. Mort de Cook, circa 1840 (7.4 x 5.1"). Condition: A crisp impression with light scattered foxing.

References:

Condition: B+

See description above.