Captain James Cook: The Journals 1768 - 1779 [Folio Society 3 Volume Set]

London: Folio Society, 2022. First Edition, Second Impression Second Printing. Hardcover. New. 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall. New set in publisher's protective eco-wrapping, as received directly from The Folio Society. This is the second printing of 2022. This sumptuous three-volume set of the journals of Captain Cook from 1768-1779 is accompanied by a full-size chart of the voyages bound in cloth. The voyages that Cook undertook between 1768 and 1779 considerably increased British knowledge of the Pacific and Southern oceans. His is the first recorded European contact with the eastern coastline of Australia and the Hawaiian Islands, the first documented circumnavigation of New Zealand, and he further penetrated the far-flung waters of Antarctica, Tahiti, New Caledonia, Alaska and Tonga. The first voyage (1768 to 1771) recorded in Tahiti the transit of Venus across the sun's face, the second voyage (1772 to 1775) set out to find the Great Southern Continent, and the third and final voyage (1776 to 1779) looked for the North-west Passage between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. It was after failing to find this that Cook turned south to explore Hawaii, where he was stabbed and killed by islanders in 1779. Each volume is devoted to one of Captain Cook's three pioneering voyages, and contains a concise and informative introduction, maps of the voyage and Philip Edwards's unsurpassed selection of the journal itself (the third volume also includes a postscript on Cook's tragic death). All three voyages included scientific officers (most notably Joseph Banks, later to become President of the Royal Society) whose chronicling of the natural history they encountered added incomparably to the Western world's canon of scholarship. The books are presented in an elegant blocked slipcase, with all three volumes fully bound in cloth and each featuring an evocative cover illustration by Croatian illustrator, Tomislav Tomic. Contemporary full-colour images of such subjects as Cook, his crews and ships, the places they visited and the inhabitants of these locations, enhance the text, alongside black-and-white integrated maps. Each book measures 9½'' x 6¼''. In addition, the 1794 chart of the voyages of Captain Cook accompanies the three volumes in its own cloth-bound map case. Printed and bound in Italy. 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall. In mint condition and publisher's wrapping as received directly from The Folio Society. Additional photos available on request or these may be viewed on my listing. HEAVY/OVERSIZE. U.K. postage at default rate but international buyers will be asked for extra. Enquiries welcome. U.S.A. £31.95 total shipping cost. All orders professionally packed, tracked and/or signed for, and insured.