77. VANCOUVER, George (1758-1798). A Voyage of Discovery to the North Pacific Ocean, and round the World; in Which the Coast of North-West America Has Been Carefully Examined and Accurately Surveyed. Undertaken by His Majesty’s Command, Principally with a View to Ascertain the Existence of Any Navigable Communication between the North Pacific and North Atlantic Oceans; and Performed in the Years 1790, 1791, 1792, 1793, 1794, and 1795, in the “Discovery” Sloop of War, and Armed Tender “Chatham”.... London: G. G. & J. Robinson; J. Edwards, 1798. 4 vols.: 3 vols., 4to (text) + folio (atlas). Text: [8] xxix [1, blank] [8] 432 + [10] 504 + [10] 505 [3, errata] pp., copper-engraved map, 17 copper-engraved plates illustrating views on land and sea and natives (including Alaska, Hawaii, California—the 3 plates of California interest are: “The Mission of S^t. Carlos, near Monterrey”; “The Presidio of Monterrey”; “A Remarkable Mountain near the River of Monterrey”). 3 vols., large 4to, contemporary tree calf (sympathetically rebacked at an earlier date in calf, gilt-lettered red and green morocco spine labels, spine stamped in gilt and blind). Bindings worn, with some cracking of original leather, text and plates uniformly age-toned, some foxing and offsetting from plates to text, upper hinge of vol. 1 weak. Generous margins. Engraved armorial bookplates in all three volumes. Atlas: 10 folding copper-engraved maps, 6 copper-engraved views (profiles of parts of coasts, headlands, etc.) [see partial list of maps, charts, and profiles below]. Large folio, later (early twentieth-century?) three-quarter sheep over blue marbled boards. Binding rubbed and spinal extremities chipped. Early ink manuscript table of contents. Some foxing and browning, heavier along blank margins. Overall a very good to near fine copy, complete.
          First edition of “one of the most important accounts of the exploration of the Pacific Northwest” (Streeter Sale 3497). Barrett, Baja California 2485. California 49: Forty-Nine Maps of California from the Sixteenth Century to the Present (Norman J. W. Thrower) 18 (discussing plate 8, the chart of the Northwest Coast with insets of the ports of San Diego and San Francisco; chart illustrated at p. 37; see more discussion of plate 8 below). Cowan I, p. 236. Cowan II, p. 655. Ferguson, Australia 281. Forbes, Hawaiian National Bibliography 298: “Vancouver, who had served on Cook’s Third Voyage, was made commander of an expedition whose express purpose was to reclaim wherever possible British rights to the Northwest Coast of America.... Vancouver sailed to the Pacific via Australia, where he discovered and charted King George Sound and Cape Hood, passed Van Diemen’s Land, and visited New Zealand, Hawaii, and the Northwest Coast. During the course of three seasons, he surveyed Alaska and the Northwest Coast, investigated the Strait of Juan de Fuca, discovered the Strait of Georgia, and circumnavigated Vancouver Island. He visited San Francisco, Monterey, and other Spanish settlements of Alta California.” Graff 4456. Harlow, Maps of San Francisco Bay 13; Maps of the Pueblo Lands of San Diego 10. Hill, pp. 303-304. Howell 50, California 243; Anniversary Catalogue 112 (Richard B. Reed description) “[Vancouver’s] coastal survey of the area north of San Francisco was the most accurate that had been done to that time.... His Voyage is important not only for the magnificent charts and splendid views that accompanied it, but also for the valuable and extensive amount of information that it provided on the Spanish settlements, the Indian tribes, and the physical features of the country that he visited. It is one of the ‘classics’ of the late eighteenth-century geographical literature.... An 8vo edition, with corrections, was issued in six volumes, without an atlas, in 1801, and French translations appeared in 1800, 1801, and 1803, with German, Swedish, and Russian editions being published in 1799, 1800, and 1827 respectively. None, however, can match the elegance and importance of this first printing.”
          Howes V23: “Of all modern exploring voyages to the Pacific those of Cook, La Pérouse and Vancouver were the most important.” Huntington Library, Zamorano 80...Exhibition of Famous and Notorious California Classics 77. Jones 667. Lada-Mocarski 55. Lande 1495. Mathes, California Colonial Bibliography 70. National Maritime Museum Catalogue III 142. Norris 4063. O’Reilly & Reitman, Bibliographie de Tahiti 635. Phillips, Atlases 197. Smith 10469. Staton & Tremaine 688. Tweney, The Washington 89 #78 (illustrated at p. 73 is “the first known picture of Mount Rainier” by John Sykes): “[Vancouver’s] meticulous survey literally put on the map of the world the intricacies of Puget Sound, Hood Canal, and the western coast of mainland Canada. He was the first to circumnavigate Vancouver Island, and the charts and maps he produced were so accurate and complete as to continue being used almost to the present day. He bestowed approximately 400 place names, ninety percent of which are still in use.” Van Nostrand, The First Hundred Years of Painting in California, pp. 6-7, 124-25. Van Nostrand & Coulter, California Pictorial, pp. 8-11 (illustrating John Sykes’s “Presidio of Monterey” and “Mission of San Carlos”). Wagner, Cartography of the Northwest Coast 853-860 & pp. 239-50. Wickersham 6601. Zamorano 80 #77. Vancouver charted one of the last great unknown coastlines in its entirety. His explorations and maps finally disproved the long-held theory that there was a passage that linked the Pacific Ocean with Hudson Bay. (And in a footnote to ranching history: Captain George Vancouver landed the very first long horned cattle on Hawaii Island in 1793, beginning the cattle ranching industry in Hawaii.)

Maps, charts, and profiles of California and Northwest Coast interest:

Plate 3: A Chart Shewing Part of the Coast of N.W. America, with the Tracks of His Majesty’s Sloop Discovery and Armed Tender Chatham...in Which the Continental Shore has been Finally Traced and Determined from Lat^d. 38º 15' N. and Long^d. 237º 27' E. to Lat^d. 45º 46' N. and Long^d. 236º 15'E. 77.5 x 62 cm (30-1/2 x 24-3/8 inches). Inset: Bay of Trinidad. Wagner, Cartography of the Northwest Coast 853. Pacific Coast from Northern Oregon to Bodega Bay. Mount Hood is depicted and named; it was named for Lord Hood by Lieut. W. R. Broughton in October of 1792.

Plate 4: Views of Parts of the Coast of North West America...Cape Mendocino the South Promontory.... 35.7 x 47.5 cm (14-1/8 x 18-3/4 inches). Six profiles of Northern California to Washington, including Cape Mendocino, Cape Orford, Cape Gregory, Point Grenville, Cape Flattery, and Mount Olympus.

Plate 5: A Chart Shewing Part of the Coast of N.W. America with the Tracks of His Majesty’s Sloop Discovery and Armed Tender Chatham...in Which the Continental Shore has been Correctly Traced and Determined from Lat. 45° 30' N. and Long. 236° 12' E. to Lat. 52° 15' N. and Long 232°40 E. at the Different Periods Shewn by the Tracks. 78.3 x 61.2 cm. (30-3/4 x 24-1/8 inches). Insets: (1) Entrance of Columbia River; (2) Gray’s Harbour; (3) Port Discovery. Wagner, Cartography of the Northwest Coast 854. This chart covers the extreme northern edge of Oregon up to Queen Charlotte Sound, north of Vancouver Island. Mount Rainier is illustrated and named; it was named in May of 1792 after Peter Rainier, who was to become a Rear Admiral within three years of having the majestic peak named for him.

Plate 6: Views of Parts of the Coast of North West America...The Westernmost of Scot’s Islands.... 36.2 x 46.5 cm (14-1/4 x 18-3/8 inches). Six views of coastal profiles from Oregon to Canada, including Scot’s Island, Cape Scot, Woody Point, Nootka Sound, Columbia River–Cape Disappointment, and Punto Barro de Arena. These views cover the same area as in plate 5: Scott (as it is now) is just north of Vancouver Island. Cape Disappointment is the southern tip of Washington State.

Plate 7: A Chart Shewing Part of the Coast of N.W. America with the Tracks of His Majesty’s Sloop Discovery and Armed Tender Chatham...in Which the Continental Shore Has Been Correctly Traced and Determined from Lat. 5lº.45' N. and Long. 232°.08' E. to Lat. 57°.30' N. and Long. 226°44 E. at the Periods Shewn by the Tracks... 75.2 x 61.1 cm (29-5/8 x 24 inches). Inset: A Survey of Port Stewart. Wagner, Cartography of the Northwest Coast 855. This chart covers from Queen Charlotte Sound north to the area of Sitka, Alaska.

Plate 8: A Chart Shewing Part of the Coast of N.W. America with the Tracks of His Majesty’s Sloop Discovery and Armed Tender Chatham...in Which the Continental Shore has been Correctly Traced and Determined from Lat^de. 30°.00. N. and Long^d. 244°.32 E. to Lat^d. 38°.30 N. and Long^d. 237°.13. E. Insets: (1) Entrance of Port S^n. Francisco; (2) Port S^n. Diego. 76.6 x 61.5 cm (30-1/8 x 24-1/4 inches). California 49: Forty-Nine Maps of California from the Sixteenth Century to the Present (Norman J. W. Thrower): “This chart of the California coast from 30º to 38º30' north latitude was compiled from surveys made by Captain George Vancouver of the British Royal Navy. It is one of a series of charts covering the northwest coast of America from 30º to about 60º north latitude made from surveys conducted in the years 1792-1794. These charts superseded all others of the coast, became the standard and were much copied. It was not until the 1850s that Vancouver’s charts for the western coast of the United States were replaced by those of the United States Coast Survey as the standard.... The inset of the entrance to San Francisco Bay is from a survey by Vancouver, while that of San Diego was taken from Spanish charts with additions and corrections by Vancouver.” Harlow, Maps of San Francisco Bay 13 (fourth separately printed map of San Francisco); Maps of the Pueblo Lands of San Diego 10 (third separately printed map of San Diego): “Vancouver made no survey of the port. Noting that Dalrymple’s chart was ‘entitled to much praise,’ he nevertheless suggested some ‘little improvements.” Wagner, Cartography of the Northwest Coast 856. The map extends from St. Domingo, Mexico in the south to Point Reyes, California, in the north, and the vessels’ tracks are shown by dotted lines. Spanish missions and presidios are noted. A note in the cartouche says “The parts shaded red are taken from the Spanish Authorities.”

Plate 9: Views of Parts of the Coast of North West America...Punto de los Reyes.... 36.7 x 47.3 cm (14-1/2 x 18-5/8 inches). Coastal views including Punto de los Reyes to the Bay of Sir Francis Drake, entrance to the Port of St. Francisco, Point Piños to the River Carmelo, Santa Barbara to beyond the Presidio, Port San Diego Punta de Loma, two remarkable mountains south of San Diego, and Cape Colnett. The profile showing Santa Barbara includes small renderings of the chief architecture then in existence.

Plate 10: A Chart Shewing Part of the Coast of N.W. America with the Tracks of His Majesty’s Sloop Discovery and Armed Tender Chatham...in Which the Continental Shore Has Been Correctly Traced and Determined from Lat^de. of 59°.30' North & Long^de. 207°20' East; to Cape Douglas in Lat^de. 58°.52' North & Long^de. 207°20 East. Inset: A Survey of Port Chatham. 77.6 x 62.1 cm (30-5/8 x 24-1/2 inches). Wagner, Cartography of the Northwest Coast 857. Plates 10, 11, and 12 are all around the same area, the Alaska Peninsula, Kenai Peninsula, and to the east. Plate 10 shows the east coast of the Alaska Peninsula in the Cook Inlet area (Anchorage is at the head of Cook Inlet).

Plate 11: A Chart Shewing Part of the Coast of N.W. America with the Tracks of His Majesty’s Sloop Discovery and Armed Tender Chatham...in Which the Continental Shore Has Been Correctly Traced and Determined from Lat^d. 59º.45' N. and Long^d. 219º.30' E. to Lat^d. 59º.56' N. and Long^d. 212º.08 E. at the Periods Shown by the Track. Inset: A Survey of Port Chalmers. 55.2 x 72.1 cm (21-3/4 x 28-3/8 inches). Wagner, Cartography of the Northwest Coast 858. Plate 11 forms a group with plates 10 and 12, moving eastward to show the southeast coast of the Kenai Peninsula and Prince William Sound.

Plate 12: A Chart Shewing Part of the Coast of N.W. America with the Tracks of His Majesty’s Sloop Discovery and Armed Tender Chatham...in Which the Continental Shore Has Been Correctly Traced and Determined from the Lat^de. 57º.07½ N. and Long^d. 227º.00 E. to Lat^d. 59º.59. N. and Long^d. 219º.00.E. at the Periods Shewn by the Track. Insets: (1) Entrance into Cross Sound; (2) A Survey of Port Conclusion; (3) A Survey of Port Protection. 73.4 x 61.7 cm (28-7/8 x 24-1/4 inches). Wagner, Cartography of the Northwest Coast 859. Plates 10 and 11 are of a group with plate 12, here showing Prince William Sound to a point near the Alaska Panhandle.

Plate 13: Views of Headlands and Islands on the Coasts of North West and South America, 36.7 x 47.3 cm (14-1/2 x 18-5/8 inches). Numerous views of the coast, including Cook’s Inlet at Port Chatham, Port San Blas and the Islet of Diego Ramírez to the south of Cape Horn. Includes Cabo San Lucas.

Plate 14: A Chart Shewing Part of the Coast of N.W. America with the Tracks of His Majesty’s Sloop Discovery and Armed Tender Chatham...in Which the Continental Shore Has Been Correctly Traced and Determined, from Lat^de. 29°.54 N. and Long. 244°.33 E. to Cape Douglas in Lat. 58°.52. N. and Long. 207°.20 E. during the Summers of 1792, 1793 and 1794.... 76.8 x 59.5 cm (30-1/4 x 23-3/8 inches). Wagner, Cartography of the Northwest Coast 860. Here Vancouver presents a combination of all of the maps above, showing the Pacific coast from western Alaska to northern Mexico. Full lines show the vessels’ tracks north, with dotted lines indicating the vessels’ tracks south. A note within the cartouche states, “The parts not shaded to the Eastward of Cape Decision are taken from Spanish Authorities—and those not shaded to the Westward of Cape St. Hermogenes are taken from Russian Authorities.”

          This magnificent set is also important for the history of the iconography of California. The prints of Monterey, which were engraved from artwork by British artist John Sykes (1773-1858), are frequently described as the first published views of California. This assertion does not take into account earlier prints such as those found in Montanus (Drake-New Albion), Cooke, and Shelvocke, images on maps (such as land forms of New Albion on the inset of the Hondius map), or even the pictorial vignettes on the beautiful frontispiece map of Venegas (see item 78 herein). However, artist John Sykes’s three plates of Monterey are among the few published prints of California from the eighteenth century. Furthermore, they appear to be among the earliest printed plates of Upper California made from artwork by an artist who actually painted or sketched on site. We think it appropriate to include within the category of published views of California the incredibly detailed coastal profiles of the California coast found in the atlas. These profiles are a true marriage of science and art. Regarding the artwork found in Vancouver’s Voyage, Jonathan Raban in his article “Battleground of the Eye” (Atlantic Monthly, May 2001) comments: “In 1791 and 1792...Spanish and British expeditions cruised through the region, proving the insularity of Vancouver Island and charting Puget Sound. The Spaniards shipped professional artists...whereas the English, under Captain George Vancouver, made do with the artistic efforts of a bunch of talented young midshipmen, including John Sykes, Harry Humphrys, and Thomas Heddington. From the mass of sketches that came home to London and Madrid one can see something of the Pacific Northwest but much more of the tastes and interests prevailing among cultivated young Europeans in the last decade of the eighteenth century. One catches the artists’ excitement at the strange customs, costumes, and architecture of primitive man, and their elation at finding themselves in a real-life Salvator Rosa landscape, with all its shaggy cliffs, tangled woods, blasted trees, and lurid skies.”   (4 vols.)          ($20,000-30,000)