Conquest of Everest - First Edition - Signed - Edmund Hillary - Bauman Rare Books

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Conquest of Everest

Edmund HILLARY | John HUNT

Item#: 114287 We're sorry, this item has been sold

Conquest of Everest

Conquest of Everest

SIGNED BY SIR EDMUND HILLARY AND EXPEDITION MEMBERS GEORGE LOWE AND CHARLES EVANS

(HILLARY, Edmund) HUNT, John. The Conquest of Everest. With a Chapter on the Final Assault by Sir Edmund Hillary. New York: E. P. Dutton and Company, 1954. Octavo, original cloth, original dust jacket.

First American edition of the official account of the first summit of Mount Everest, signed on the half title by Edmund Hillary and expedition members George Lowe and Charles Evans. With eight color photographic plates, 48 half-tone plates and a number of in-text illustrations after pen-and-ink sketches.

The 1953 British Expedition to Mount Everest was the eighth in 30 years to attempt Everest. On May 29th, 1953 Sir Edmund Hillary and Sherpa guide Tenzing Norgay at last stood at the summit; it was a culminating moment in mountaineering history, and one of the great achievements of human stamina and will. This account was written in one month by Sir John Hunt, the leader of the expedition, in order to satisfy the immediate demand around the world for the story of the British team's success. Chapter 16 is Sir Edmund Hillary's stirring account of the final part of the climb, and the appendices are by members of the expedition. "A definitive account worth reading" (Krawczyk 465). Neate 393. Contemporary newspaper photograph depicting Hillary, Lowe and Evans laid in.

Book near-fine, dust jacket with some sunning to spine, chip to lower edge of rear panel not affecting letterpress, closed split along front flap fold, very good.

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Aquatint Copperplate process by which the plate is “bitten” by exposure to acid. By changing the areas of the plate that are exposed and the length of time the plate is submerged in the acid bath, the engraver can obtain fine and varying shades of gray that closely resemble watercolor washes. Although the name contains the word “tint”, this is a black-and-white printing process; aquatint plates can often be hand colored, however.
Armorial Used to describe a binding bearing the coat of arms of the original owner, or with bookplates incorporating the owner’s arms.
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Boards Hard front and rear covers of a bound book which are covered in cloth, leather or paper. “Original boards” refers to cardboard-like front and back boards, from about 1700 to 1840, used as temporary protection for books before their purchasers would have them bound. Of particular value to collectors as evidence of a very early form of the book.
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