Products | Voyager Rare Books Maps & Prints

Wallace’s Tree Swift (Dendrochelidon Wallacei ) John Gould – The Birds of Asia – 1860

Original hand-coloured lithograph produced on limestone from John Gould’s most impressive series “Birds of Asia” completed and published in London circa 1860.

Gould writes in the accompanying narrative “After carefully comparing Indian specimens .. and Javanese specimens … with examples of a bird of the same form sent from Macassar by Mr Wallace, I could come to no other conclusion than that the latter is a very distinct and undescribed species, and I therefore took the opportunity of naming the bird D. Wallacei, in honour of its discoverer; not that there is any necessity for me to attempt to perpetuate the name of this gentleman as a promoter of natural science, since his writings sufficiently attest his devotion to more than one of its departments”. Gould very humble and obviously likes long sentences.

Gould goes on to say that the birds are figured a natural size. Little was then known about them … the accompanying narrative describes their colouring is some detail. The execution of the lithograph is excellent, it is very clean and the colouring still very bright and full and enhanced by the use of gum arabic which creates a sense of richness and depth

Tree swift named by John Gould in honour of Alfred Russell Wallace

$390.00

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Map of Bengal – Petrus Bertius – 1602

An original and delightful miniature copper engraved map of “Bengala” by the great geographer Bertius published in the Latin edition of his miniature atlas of 1602. The engraving were carried out by Jocodus Hondius.

The decorative map show the Bay of Bengal the main towns, surrounding hills and the rivers coming down to the delta including the sacred River Ganges. A special little map fro lover of the region.

Price $90.00 unframed or $190.00 framed in typical Voyager style with lavish gilt surround

The Mystery of Bengal Over 400 Year old

$90.00

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Polar Exploration Cards – John Player – First Series Complete -1916

A complete set of 25 cards of the sought after First Series of Polar Exploration cards issued by John Player & Sons of Nottingham, England. Good condition front and back.

Includes – Lieut. Sir E.H. Shackleton C.V.O.; The Northern Party at the South Magnetic Pole; The Aurora Borealis; The Aurora Australis; The British Antarctic Expedition 1910; Dr Fridjof Nansen; The “Nimrod” Picking up the Northern Party; A Remarkable Fumarole in the Old Crater of Mount Erebus etc

First series Complete and getting scarce

$120.00

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Polar Exploration Cards – Players Series 2

A complete set of 25 cards in very good condition of the 2nd series of Polar Exploration cigarette cards by John Player. Elusive complete.

The Terra Nova Expedition – Scott, Evans, Oates, Wilson (Uncle Bill) and the victorious Norwegian Expedition including “Amundsen at the South Pole”

$120.00

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Discovery – The Quest for the Great South Land – Estensen

Miriam Estensen’s very readable book about the hunt for land in the Southern Hemisphere.

Published by Allen & Unwin in 1998. Octavo, 286 pages including and index and extensive bibliography. Nicely illustrated very good condition.

Estensen employs a much wider and very much earlier time frame for this work. Despite this we have the Spanish, Dutch and Portuguese activities before the French and the English … and a good balance is achieved regarding the relevance of all.

The Quest well researched nicely written

$20.00

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The Cruise of the “Cachalot” Round the World after Sperm Whales – Frank Bullen – 1899

Published by Smith and Elder, a second edition, London 1899 in the more upmarket binding with the striking gilt whale to the front board.

Large octavo, 380 pages with 7 pages of plates and a folding map.

Bullen, a homeless waif, went so sea at twelve years old. After six years he landed at New Bedford, Massachusetts where he secured a berth on the “Cachalot” a whaler that would be his home for the next three years. A ripping yarn of fact and fiction actually based on the authors experiences on the “Splendid” of New Bedford in whaling grounds off “the Solanders, Vau Vau and the Australian Gulf”.

Admired by Rudyard Kipling as the best Whaling Narrative.

Best Whaling Story according to Kipling

$140.00

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All products

Wallace’s Tree Swift (Dendrochelidon Wallacei ) John Gould – The Birds of Asia – 1860

Map of Bengal – Petrus Bertius – 1602

Polar Exploration Cards – John Player – First Series Complete -1916

Polar Exploration Cards – Players Series 2

Discovery – The Quest for the Great South Land – Estensen

The Cruise of the “Cachalot” Round the World after Sperm Whales – Frank Bullen – 1899

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