ELLIS, Henry (1721-1806). A Voyage to Hudson's Bay, by the Dobbs Galley and California, In the Years 1746 and 1747, For Discovering a North-West Passage. London: H. Whitridge, 1748.

8vo (200 x 121 mm). Engraved folding map, 9 engraved plates (4 folding). (Frontispiece map with pale stains.) Contemporary calf (skillfully rebacked preserving original spine, some leather torn away lower cover). Provenance: marginal pencil annotations.

FIRST EDITION. The first part of Ellis's work is a synopsis of twenty-three English voyages of discovery to the Northwest Passage. The second part describes the voyage of Captains Moor and Smith which proved the nonexistence of the Northwest Passage from Hudson's Bay, a discovery which led to the rapid decline of British interest in the search. Not until 1816 was interest revived. Ross's first journey into the arctic regions aboard the ships Isabella and Alexander resulted from this revival. Hill 540; Lande 1161; NMM 798; Sabin 22312; Staton & Tremaine/TPL 207; Streeter sale VI:3642.


Estimate $1,000-1,500

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