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Abbey's Road - Inscribed -
Edward Abbey, Jean Pruchnik (illustrator)
1979 - E. P. Dutton, New York - First Edition
A fine first edition, illustrated by Jean Pruchnik, signed and inscribed ‘all the best! Edward Abbey Santa Fe 11/56/88’
‘In the spirit of Desert Solitaire and The Journey Home, Abbey's Road is a personal odyssey. Edward Abbey's explorations include the familiar territory of the Rio Grande in Texas and Canyonlands National Park and Lake Powell in Utah. He also takes us to such varied places as Scotland, the interior of Australia, and the Sierra Madre and Isla de la Sombra in Mexico.’
‘I've been along a few of Mr. Abbey's roads. He sees much more than I did. Indeed, reading him is often better than being there was.’ – John Leonard.
‘Abbey's the original fly in the ointment. Give him money and prizes. Don't let anything happen to him.’ – Thomas McGuane.
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Price HK$ 6,000
1979 - E. P. Dutton, New York - First Edition
A fine first edition, illustrated by Jean Pruchnik, signed and inscribed ‘all the best! Edward Abbey Santa Fe 11/56/88’‘In the spirit of Desert Solitaire and The Journey Home, Abbey's Road is a personal odyssey. Edward Abbey's explorations include the familiar territory of the Rio Grande in Texas and Canyonlands National Park and Lake Powell in Utah. He also takes us to such varied places as Scotland, the interior of Australia, and the Sierra Madre and Isla de la Sombra in Mexico.’
‘I've been along a few of Mr. Abbey's roads. He sees much more than I did. Indeed, reading him is often better than being there was.’ – John Leonard.
‘Abbey's the original fly in the ointment. Give him money and prizes. Don't let anything happen to him.’ – Thomas McGuane.
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Price HK$ 6,000
The Okavango River -
Charles John Andersson
1861 - Hurst and Blackett, London - First Edition
With engraved frontispiece, engraved extra title page, and fifteen further engraved plates.
A scarce example in original publisher’s cloth, of Swedish explorer, hunter, trader and naturalist Charles John Andersson’s second book, describing his hunting expeditions through Namaqualand and Damaraland (Namibia). Andersson intended to explore these countries right up to Cunene or Nourse River but the difficulties of the expedition, though encountered with indomitable courage, proved to be insuperable, and he had to turn back. He obtained, however, much valuable information and his success as a hunter and collector was unique in this part of the continent. The coast-line of South-West Africa is carefully described and there is an interesting account of the once-famed guano island, Ichaboe.’ – Mendelssohn.
Charles John (Karl Johan) Andersson (1827-67) - The Swedish explorer, hunter, trader and naturalist Charles John Andersson was born on 4 March, 1827 in Vårmland, Sweden, and died on 9 July, 1867 in Angola. He was the illegitimate son of Llewellyn Lloyd (1792– 1876), a British bear hunter, and his Swedish servant. Andersson grew up in Sweden, where he hunted with his father and started to collect natural history objects. In the years 1847–1849 he studied in Lund. In 1849 he went to London, hoping to sell his natural history collection in order to finance his travels. There he met Francis Galton (1822–1911), and they decided to make a joint expedition to Southern Africa. In June 1850 they arrived at the Cape and travelled from there to Walvis Bay by boat. They went far inland on their expedition, aiming to reach Lake Ngami, which had been discovered not long before by David Livingstone (1813–1873), but were unsuccessful. Galton then returned to England, but Andersson remained in Africa and finally managed to reach Lake Ngami from Namibia in 1853.
In 1853 he returned to London, where he eventually published Lake Ngami (1854), the record of his two expeditions. He returned to Africa the same year, 1854. For a short time he worked as a manager of a number of mines in Namibia, but he preferred to continue his explorations, reaching the Okavango river in 1859 (The Okavango River, 1861).
Next he went to Cape Town where he married and then settled with his wife in Otjimbingwe in central Namibia (then South-West Africa), where Andersson made a living as a breeder of cattle and a trader. In 1867 he travelled north, to the Portuguese settlements in Angola, in the hope of opening up a better route of communication with Europe. However, he did not manage to cross the Kunene River and had to return. On his way back he died after a short illness, and was buried by his companion. After his death his wife and children went to live in Cape Town. His Notes of Travel (1875) were posthumously published by his father. Andersson had collected some 400 species of birds on his travels; his notes on the ornithology of Namibia were published posthumously as Notes on the birds of Damaraland and the adjacent territories of South-West Africa (1872).’ – Anne S. Troelstra, Bibliography of Natural History Travel Narratives (Wallis 1936).
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Price HK$ 18,000
1861 - Hurst and Blackett, London - First Edition
With engraved frontispiece, engraved extra title page, and fifteen further engraved plates.A scarce example in original publisher’s cloth, of Swedish explorer, hunter, trader and naturalist Charles John Andersson’s second book, describing his hunting expeditions through Namaqualand and Damaraland (Namibia). Andersson intended to explore these countries right up to Cunene or Nourse River but the difficulties of the expedition, though encountered with indomitable courage, proved to be insuperable, and he had to turn back. He obtained, however, much valuable information and his success as a hunter and collector was unique in this part of the continent. The coast-line of South-West Africa is carefully described and there is an interesting account of the once-famed guano island, Ichaboe.’ – Mendelssohn.
Charles John (Karl Johan) Andersson (1827-67) - The Swedish explorer, hunter, trader and naturalist Charles John Andersson was born on 4 March, 1827 in Vårmland, Sweden, and died on 9 July, 1867 in Angola. He was the illegitimate son of Llewellyn Lloyd (1792– 1876), a British bear hunter, and his Swedish servant. Andersson grew up in Sweden, where he hunted with his father and started to collect natural history objects. In the years 1847–1849 he studied in Lund. In 1849 he went to London, hoping to sell his natural history collection in order to finance his travels. There he met Francis Galton (1822–1911), and they decided to make a joint expedition to Southern Africa. In June 1850 they arrived at the Cape and travelled from there to Walvis Bay by boat. They went far inland on their expedition, aiming to reach Lake Ngami, which had been discovered not long before by David Livingstone (1813–1873), but were unsuccessful. Galton then returned to England, but Andersson remained in Africa and finally managed to reach Lake Ngami from Namibia in 1853.
In 1853 he returned to London, where he eventually published Lake Ngami (1854), the record of his two expeditions. He returned to Africa the same year, 1854. For a short time he worked as a manager of a number of mines in Namibia, but he preferred to continue his explorations, reaching the Okavango river in 1859 (The Okavango River, 1861).
Next he went to Cape Town where he married and then settled with his wife in Otjimbingwe in central Namibia (then South-West Africa), where Andersson made a living as a breeder of cattle and a trader. In 1867 he travelled north, to the Portuguese settlements in Angola, in the hope of opening up a better route of communication with Europe. However, he did not manage to cross the Kunene River and had to return. On his way back he died after a short illness, and was buried by his companion. After his death his wife and children went to live in Cape Town. His Notes of Travel (1875) were posthumously published by his father. Andersson had collected some 400 species of birds on his travels; his notes on the ornithology of Namibia were published posthumously as Notes on the birds of Damaraland and the adjacent territories of South-West Africa (1872).’ – Anne S. Troelstra, Bibliography of Natural History Travel Narratives (Wallis 1936).
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Price HK$ 18,000
A Voyage Round the World, In the Years MDCCXL, I, II, III, IV. -
George Anson, Richard Walter
1748 - Printed for the Author, London - First Edition
A finely bound ‘Royal Paper’ copy of this beautifully illustrated work which ‘has long occupied a distinguished position as a masterpiece of descriptive travel’ (Hill), and ‘a model of what such literature should be’ (Cox).
Containing forty-two copper-engraved maps, charts, views, and coastal profiles, all but one folding, including views of Brazilian harbours and cities, Acapulco, Tenian, Port St. Julian, Magellan’s Straits, the Bay of Manila, Saipan, Lama, Lantau, Chinese junks, and others, and large folding maps of South America, the Philippines, and the Pacific Ocean, as well as a twelve-page subscriber list, and the two-page instructions to the binder.
England, at war with Spain in 1739, equipped eight ships under the command of George Anson to harass the Spaniards on the western coast of South America for the purpose of cutting off Spanish supplies of wealth from the Pacific area. Seven ships were lost and of 900 men 600 perished. As usual, scurvy took an appalling toll.
The Spanish fleet sent to oppose the British ran into storms; provisions ran out and many ships were wrecked. Thus the primary objective of the expedition was not attained. Anson, however, continued taking prizes off the Pacific coast during 1741-42, and in June 1743, near the Philippines, he captured the Spanish galleon Nostra Seigniora de Cabadonga and its treasure of £400,000 sterling, which allowed Anson and the surviving members of his crew to reach England much the richer.
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Price HK$ 59,000
1748 - Printed for the Author, London - First Edition
A finely bound ‘Royal Paper’ copy of this beautifully illustrated work which ‘has long occupied a distinguished position as a masterpiece of descriptive travel’ (Hill), and ‘a model of what such literature should be’ (Cox).Containing forty-two copper-engraved maps, charts, views, and coastal profiles, all but one folding, including views of Brazilian harbours and cities, Acapulco, Tenian, Port St. Julian, Magellan’s Straits, the Bay of Manila, Saipan, Lama, Lantau, Chinese junks, and others, and large folding maps of South America, the Philippines, and the Pacific Ocean, as well as a twelve-page subscriber list, and the two-page instructions to the binder.
England, at war with Spain in 1739, equipped eight ships under the command of George Anson to harass the Spaniards on the western coast of South America for the purpose of cutting off Spanish supplies of wealth from the Pacific area. Seven ships were lost and of 900 men 600 perished. As usual, scurvy took an appalling toll.
The Spanish fleet sent to oppose the British ran into storms; provisions ran out and many ships were wrecked. Thus the primary objective of the expedition was not attained. Anson, however, continued taking prizes off the Pacific coast during 1741-42, and in June 1743, near the Philippines, he captured the Spanish galleon Nostra Seigniora de Cabadonga and its treasure of £400,000 sterling, which allowed Anson and the surviving members of his crew to reach England much the richer.
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Price HK$ 59,000
Real Sailor-Songs -
John Ashton (Editor)
1891 - The Leadenhall Press, London - First Edition
A magnificent and large folio, containing 129 historical naval songs in full page and broadsheet format, charmingly illustrated with over 200 engravings.
One third of the songs celebrate the great British naval victories up to the end of the 18th century, the balance gathered under the headings of - ‘Press Gang’, ‘Disaster’, ‘Ashore’, ‘Love’, and ‘Miscellaneous’.
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Price HK$ 6,000
1891 - The Leadenhall Press, London - First Edition
A magnificent and large folio, containing 129 historical naval songs in full page and broadsheet format, charmingly illustrated with over 200 engravings.One third of the songs celebrate the great British naval victories up to the end of the 18th century, the balance gathered under the headings of - ‘Press Gang’, ‘Disaster’, ‘Ashore’, ‘Love’, and ‘Miscellaneous’.
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Price HK$ 6,000
The Splendid Idle Forties. Stories of Old California -
Gertrude Atherton, Harrison Fisher (illustrator)
1902 - The Macmillan Company, New York - First Edition
‘Perhaps the best known collection of stories of that romantic period of California history when the incoming Americans were first intermingling with the Californians of rancho and presidio...’ – The Zamorano 80: A Selection of Distinguished California Books Made by Members of the Zamorano Club.
A fine bright example, of this collection of short stories, illustrated with eight plates by Harrison Fisher.
‘The finest stories ever written about early California’ – Phil Townsend Hanna.
The stories are: The Pearls of Loreto; The Ears of Twenty Americans; The Washtub Mail; The Conquest of Dona Jacoba; A Ramble with Eulogia; The Isle of Skulls; The Head of a Priest; La Perdida; Lukari's Story; Natalie Ivanhoff: A Memory of Fort Ross; The Vengeance of Padre Arroyo; The Bells of San Gabriel; and When the Devil was Well.
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Price HK$ 3,000
1902 - The Macmillan Company, New York - First Edition
‘Perhaps the best known collection of stories of that romantic period of California history when the incoming Americans were first intermingling with the Californians of rancho and presidio...’ – The Zamorano 80: A Selection of Distinguished California Books Made by Members of the Zamorano Club.A fine bright example, of this collection of short stories, illustrated with eight plates by Harrison Fisher.
‘The finest stories ever written about early California’ – Phil Townsend Hanna.
The stories are: The Pearls of Loreto; The Ears of Twenty Americans; The Washtub Mail; The Conquest of Dona Jacoba; A Ramble with Eulogia; The Isle of Skulls; The Head of a Priest; La Perdida; Lukari's Story; Natalie Ivanhoff: A Memory of Fort Ross; The Vengeance of Padre Arroyo; The Bells of San Gabriel; and When the Devil was Well.
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Price HK$ 3,000
Drums -
James Boyd, N. C. Wyeth (Illustrator)
1928 - Charles Scribner's Sons, New York - First Edition, Second Issue
Finely bound copy of Boyd’s epic novel of the American Revolution, finely bound, and highlighted by N. C. Wyeth’s iconic illustrations, black and white pen drawings, colour title page and fourteen full-page colour plates.
One of Life magazine’s 100 most outstanding books for 1924-1944.
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Price HK$ 4,000
1928 - Charles Scribner's Sons, New York - First Edition, Second Issue
Finely bound copy of Boyd’s epic novel of the American Revolution, finely bound, and highlighted by N. C. Wyeth’s iconic illustrations, black and white pen drawings, colour title page and fourteen full-page colour plates.One of Life magazine’s 100 most outstanding books for 1924-1944.
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Price HK$ 4,000
Travels to Discover the Source of the Nile, in the Years 1768, 1769, 1770, 1771, 1772, and 1773 -
James Bruce of Kinnaird
1790 - Printed by J. Ruthven, Edinburgh - First Edition
A superior set of the first edition in five large and finely bound volumes, one of the great annals of travel and explorations in Africa, a cornerstone of any collection of Africana. In addition to the three large folding copper-engraved maps, there are fifty-eight copper-engraved plates (four of which are maps or battle plans) and seven pages of Ethiopic language.
A Scotsman with ability and education, James Bruce, 1730-1794, was appointed the English consul to Algiers, serving for two years before resigning to roam North Africa investigating architectural ruins. Following this preparation, he set off to fulfil his great ambition, to discover the source of the Nile. His travels into Abyssinia, a remarkable solo undertaking, resulted in the present body of work which not only includes the narrative of his travels but also comments on the history and religion of Egypt, an account of Indian trade, a history of Abyssinia and other such material.
The DNB notes that while Bruce would not be confused with "a great scholar or a judicious critic..., few books of equal compass are equally entertaining; and few such monuments exist of the energy and enterprise of a single traveller." The many engraved plates are finely executed, and present primarily the flora and fauna encountered by Bruce on his travels.
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Price HK$ 50,000
1790 - Printed by J. Ruthven, Edinburgh - First Edition
A superior set of the first edition in five large and finely bound volumes, one of the great annals of travel and explorations in Africa, a cornerstone of any collection of Africana. In addition to the three large folding copper-engraved maps, there are fifty-eight copper-engraved plates (four of which are maps or battle plans) and seven pages of Ethiopic language.A Scotsman with ability and education, James Bruce, 1730-1794, was appointed the English consul to Algiers, serving for two years before resigning to roam North Africa investigating architectural ruins. Following this preparation, he set off to fulfil his great ambition, to discover the source of the Nile. His travels into Abyssinia, a remarkable solo undertaking, resulted in the present body of work which not only includes the narrative of his travels but also comments on the history and religion of Egypt, an account of Indian trade, a history of Abyssinia and other such material.
The DNB notes that while Bruce would not be confused with "a great scholar or a judicious critic..., few books of equal compass are equally entertaining; and few such monuments exist of the energy and enterprise of a single traveller." The many engraved plates are finely executed, and present primarily the flora and fauna encountered by Bruce on his travels.
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Price HK$ 50,000
Sick Heart River -
John Buchan
1941 - Hodder Stoughton Limited, London - First Edition
A fine first edition of Buchan’s last book, published posthumously.
The review in the April 1941 edition of Punch sums it up nicely:-
‘"If thou hast a woe, tell it not to the weakling, tell it to thy saddle-bow, and ride singing forth." John Buchan took this Proverb of Alfred as text for his book Sick Heart River (Hodder and Stoughton, 8/3) which is as good a sermon to lift the downhearted as has ever been given in the form of a novel. When Sir Edward Leithen, a former British Attorney-General, received his notice of death from a specialist, "his memory sprawled over places he had seen" and he decided to go to Quebec to make his soul and to "die standing". One journey led to another in quest of a famous French-Canadian who, in a mood of mental sickness, had suddenly left his wife and important office in New York; and was "wanted" by American people because of his genius over international affairs. The tale that follows of two white men, their half-breed guides and some "Hare Indians", their fight with and against Nature in a lonely place is soul-stirring in more than one way and makes as brave a book as the late Governor-General of Canada ever gave us.’
The fictional Sick Heart River is in the real region of the Nahanni River in Canada's Northwest Territories. It is in some of the most rugged terrain in Canada. The area was only just being mapped when Buchan, as Governor-General Lord Tweedsmuir, passed nearby during his voyage down the Mackenzie River in the summer of 1937. Having heard much about the mysterious South Nahanni, Buchan was fascinated by it and wanted to go there, but did not make it before he died in February, 1940. [Galbraith, 2001]
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Price HK$ 3,500
1941 - Hodder Stoughton Limited, London - First Edition
A fine first edition of Buchan’s last book, published posthumously. The review in the April 1941 edition of Punch sums it up nicely:-
‘"If thou hast a woe, tell it not to the weakling, tell it to thy saddle-bow, and ride singing forth." John Buchan took this Proverb of Alfred as text for his book Sick Heart River (Hodder and Stoughton, 8/3) which is as good a sermon to lift the downhearted as has ever been given in the form of a novel. When Sir Edward Leithen, a former British Attorney-General, received his notice of death from a specialist, "his memory sprawled over places he had seen" and he decided to go to Quebec to make his soul and to "die standing". One journey led to another in quest of a famous French-Canadian who, in a mood of mental sickness, had suddenly left his wife and important office in New York; and was "wanted" by American people because of his genius over international affairs. The tale that follows of two white men, their half-breed guides and some "Hare Indians", their fight with and against Nature in a lonely place is soul-stirring in more than one way and makes as brave a book as the late Governor-General of Canada ever gave us.’
The fictional Sick Heart River is in the real region of the Nahanni River in Canada's Northwest Territories. It is in some of the most rugged terrain in Canada. The area was only just being mapped when Buchan, as Governor-General Lord Tweedsmuir, passed nearby during his voyage down the Mackenzie River in the summer of 1937. Having heard much about the mysterious South Nahanni, Buchan was fascinated by it and wanted to go there, but did not make it before he died in February, 1940. [Galbraith, 2001]
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Price HK$ 3,500