1785 William Bligh Chart "CHRISTMAS ISLAND" KIRITIMATI Captain Cook's 3rd Voyage

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1785 William Bligh Chart "CHRISTMAS ISLAND" KIRITIMATI Captain Cook's 3rd Voyage:
$75.00

ChristmasIsland. Latitude 1058' N. Longitude 202028' E. Discovered in the shipsResolution and Discovery, 1777

29.5cm x 22.5 cm copperplate engraving, 37 cm x 24.5 cm sheet size,AlexanderHogg, London, 1784-1786

Weare pleased to offer this scarce original chart of "Christmas Island"in the Line Islands of the Pacific and today known as Kiritimati aspart of the Republic of Kiribati. The chart was compiled by noneotherthan the then-sailing master of the Resolution William Bligh(1754-1817) later of Bounty fame on James Cook's third and finalvoyage engraved for the New, Authentic, Entertaining, Instructive,Full and CompleteHistorical Account of Captain Cook's First, Second, Third andLast Voyages1published seriallybetween 1784 and 1786. Cook's account of his discovery of theatoll on 24 December 1777 includes an amusing account of how some ofhis crew got lost on the tiny and flat island and did not think to scanthe horizon for the masts of the Resolution which would have been visible from virtuallyany point:

"On the 24th about halfan hour after day break, land was discovered ... which upon a nearerapproach was found to be one of those low islands so common in thissea; that is a narrow bank of land incloseing the sea within; a fewcocoa nut trees were seen in two or three places, but in the generalthe land had a very barren appearence... There were not the smallesttraces of any human being having ever been here before us; and indeed,should any one be so unfortunate as to be accidentally driven upon theisland, or left there, it is hard to say, that he could be able toprolong existence... not a drop of fresh water was found on thewhole island. The land, over which they had to travel from thesea coast to the lagoon where the boats lay, was not more than threemiles across, and a plain with here and there a few shrubs upon it andfrom many parts of which the Ships masts were to be seen..."2

Bligh's precise survey3is here masterfully engraved by the prolific ThomasBowen (17??-1790) and this well-preserved example will make animportant addition to any collection related to the voyages of CaptainCook and a fine presentation if matted and framed.

Bligh's professionalism is evident in his compilation of thechart noting depth soundings, rocks and shoals - note Easternorientation of compass rose for the "sideways" presentation of thechart:

Condition- Please note carefully:The print is in overall excellent condition as can beascertained from photos,imagearea essentially pristine, no text on verso, nofolds, strongimpresssion with distinct platemark on fine quality laid paper,somewhat close and slightly uneven trim to bottom margin, one tiny pinhole to top margin. Inquirieswelcome and we encourage you to visit our other listingson .NOTES:1. The editor of the New, Authentic, Entertaining, Instructive,Full and CompleteHistorical Account of Captain Cook's First, Second, Third andLast Voyages was named as one "George WilliamAnderson", almost certainly a pseudonym for the publisher AlexanderHogg. In a recent exhibition of these historicallyimportant engravings made for this publication the Lowe Art Museum inMiami noted that thepseudonym was "a device Hogg employed in a number of his publications"intended to convey an "aura of authoritative knowledge" regarding hisediting of the official publications of the voyages. Hoggshrewdly elected to publish the work (which eventually includedaccounts of other circumnavigations) in a relatively affordable serialformat from 1784-1786 to reach abroad audience, noting in his marketing copy that this was "due to themanythousands of Persons who would wish to peruse the Discoveries... andview the astonishing fine Copper-Plates, who have hitherto beenexcluded from gratifying their eager curiosity. Theseinstallments would allow every Person, whatever may be hisCircumstances, to read about the voyages of which such vast Sums of thePublic Money have been expended." 2. Cook, James, J. C. Beaglehole, and Philip Edwards. TheJournals of Captain Cook. London, England: Penguin, 19993. Bligh later justifiably complained that thisand other surveys which he compiled entirely on his own were mistakenlyattributed to Lieutenant HenryRoberts who prepared many of Bligh's charts for engraving andpublication but did not conduct the surveys at sea.
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