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 is the first English edition of this chart detailing the track of HMS Resolution between the South Sandwich Islands and South Georgia. Captain Cook claimed South Georgia for the Kingdom of Great Britain, naming it the "Isle of Georgia" in honor of King George III. He named the Sandwich Islands "Sandwich Land" after the 4th Earl of Sandwich, First Lord of the Admiralty. This British overseas territory is in a remote and inhospitable portion of the southern Atlantic Ocean hundreds of miles east-south-east of Terra del Fuego. The islands are uninhabited save for a small British contingent to support the British Antarctic Survey who maintains a base at Bird Island. Argentina's claim over South Georgia contributed to the 1982 Falklands War. Engraved by John C. Russell. Published by William Strahan and Thomas Cadell.

References: Shirley (BL Atlases) G.COOK-1a #14.

Condition: B+

A nice impression on a lightly toned sheet with minor foxing and two vertical printer's creases. The binding trim in the left margin has been replaced with old paper.