"ONE OF THE MOST REMARKABLE INCIDENTS IN THE WHOLE OF MARITIME HISTORY": FIRST EDITION OF THE OFFICIAL ACCOUNT OF THE MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY

BLIGH, William. A Voyage to the South Sea, Undertaken by the Command of His Majesty, For the Purpose of Conveying the Bread-Fruit Tree to the West Indies, in His Majesty's Ship The Bounty, Commanded by Lieutenant William Bligh. Including an Account of the Mutiny on Board the Said Ship, and the Subsequent Voyage of Part of the Crew, in the Ship's Boat, From Tofoa, of the Friendly Islands, To Timor, a Dutch Settlement in the East Indies. London: George Nicol, 1792. Quarto, period-style full brown mottled calf gilt, red morocco spine label.

First edition of the official account of "one of the most remarkable incidents in the whole of maritime history," the mutiny on the Bounty, with stipple-engraved frontispiece portrait of Captain Bligh by J. Condé after J. Russell and seven engraved plates and charts (five folding). Beautifully bound.

"An extremely important book… It includes a somewhat revised version of the text of Bligh's narrative. The account was based upon Bligh's journal but was written, edited and seen through the press by James Burney, under the supervision of Sir Joseph Banks, during Bligh's absence from London while on his second breadfruit voyage… After visiting Tahiti and the Tonga Islands, the crew mutinied under Fletcher Christian, the master's mate. The mutiny was largely due to Bligh's harshness to his crew; also partly to attachments that had sprung up between the crew and certain of the women of Tahiti, where the Bounty afterwards returned, before sailing to Pitcairn Island" (Hill). "Bligh with 18 others was put into the ship's launch along with a few provisions and some instruments and set adrift. After a voyage of 3,600 miles and 41 days the launch succeeded in reaching Timor and Java… where the emaciated unfortunates were taken in by the Dutch" (Cox). "One of the most heroic sea voyages ever made" (Hill).

The Bounty mutiny and its ramifications would haunt Bligh always, although his reputation was also forever redeemed by the epic open-boat voyage of 4000 miles across the Pacific. Certainly one of the most famous of all feats of seamanship, it was also notable for the coastal discoveries made almost accidentally in the course of the desperate voyage. Bligh's description is accompanied by his important engraved chart of discoveries made on the coast of present-day Queensland. His achievement in charting large sections of the coast under conditions of terrible hardship partly completed the work of Cook himself on the Australian east coast—especially notable given Bligh's anger that his work on the charts of Cook's third voyage was not recognized. Hill 135. Cox II, 305. Ferguson, 125. Sabin 5910. Wantrup 62a. Owner ink signature partially erased from title page, not affecting letterpress.

Text and plates with expert cleaning, skillful paper repairs to two folding plates, "Section of the Bread Fruit" plate just trimmed at caption. In beautiful and fine period-style calf-gilt.