Relation du voyage de la mer du Sud aux côtes du Chily et du Perou, fait pendant les années 1712, 1713 & 1714 : dediée à S.A.R. Monseigneur le Duc D'Orleans, Regent du Royaume / par M. Frézier, ingenieur ordinaire du roy ; ouvrage enrichi de quantité de planches en taille-douce.
Paris: chez Jean-Geoffroy Nyon, quay de Conti, au coin de la rue Guenegaud, au Nom de Jesus, Etienne Ganeau, rue Saint Jacques, aux Armes de Dombes, vis-à-vis la Fontaine de S. Severin, Jacque Quillau, imprimeur-juré-libraire, rue Galande, aux Armes de l'Université, MDCCXVI [1716]. First Edition. A defective first edition (missing one map and one plate) of this classic in the literature of Pacific voyages of exploration. 4to: xiv,298,[2]pp, with 35 (of 37) maps, plans, and plates (18 of which are folding); ornamental engraved vignettes, and woodcut musical notation in the text (never bound in were the map of Détroit de le Maire, no. v, and the plate of Indiens en habits simples, no. ix); plate xvi was bound in twice). Contemporary calf, spine richly gilt in six compartments, brown leather lettering piece gilt, "Caissotti" in gilt script on upper board, all edges stained red, marbled end papers, red silk page marker. An exceptional, wide-margined copy, text, maps, and plates fresh and clean, marred only by a stain in the gutter of first three leaves. Provenance: copper-engraved bookplate, "Il Cittadino / Carlo Giac. Caissotti." Sabin 25924. Borba de Moraes 328. Hill, p. 115. Leclerc 1736. Palau 94964. Gibson's Library, p. 128. Item #BB0841. Item #BB0841
Frézier set sail in 1712 with a French commission to assess the strength of Spanish settlements on the Pacific coast and to revise existing charts. According to Hill, he "brought back information of considerable geographical and scientific value" to later navigators, and his account is today appreciated for its keen observations of the customs, commerce, and natural history—including the cotton and strawberry plants—of Chile, Peru and Tierra del Fuego. (It's interesting to note that Frezier's surname was itself derived from fraise, the French for strawberry.) The chapters on Indian and Creole life include descriptions of costume and architecture, as well as musical instruments. The folding plans of cities visited are often enhanced by panoramic views, as in the case of Callao, Concepción, Valparaíso, La Serena, Salvador de Bahía, and Angra (Azores). Amongst the most important plates are the general map of the expedition, the Strait of Lemaire, Valdivia, Bahía de an Vicente, Santiago de Chile, Lima and Bahía de Todos los Santos. An immediate success, the work was soon translated into English and German and republished several times in the eighteenth century. N. B. With few exceptions (always identified), we only stock books in exceptional condition, with dust jackets carefully preserved in archival, removable mylar sleeves. All orders are packaged with care and posted promptly. Satisfaction guaranteed. (Fine Editions Ltd is a member of the Independent Online Booksellers Association, and we subscribe to its codes of ethics.).
Price: $1,249.00