Maritime

Shipwrecks – Being the Historical Account of Shipwrecks along the Victorian Coast from Cape Otway to Port Fairy 1836-1914 – Margaret Mackenzie.

This is the third enlarged self published edition 1964 printed by National Press, Melbourne. Small octavo, 135 pages illustrated. A very good copy, bookplate of previous owner on front free end paper.

The author of this book had a lifetime interest in the subject. What makes the book all the more astonishing is that she was twelve years blind before she started to put it together with the help of her daughter Jean.

Covers eighteen important shipwrecks starting with the elusive “Mahogany Ship” … then the Thistle; Children; Joanna; Enterprise; Schomberg; Champion; Marie Gabrielle; Young Australia; Loch Ard; Eric the Red; Olivia Davis; Edinburgh Castle; Fiji; Newfield; La Bella; Falls of Halladale and the Antares.

Some nice detail and a super sketch map of the wreck locations. To read this is to have a pretty thorough knowledge of the events … the author sure did.

Victorian Shipwrecks – a Key Reference

$25.00

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Two Voyages to the South Seas – Dumont D’Urville – 2 Volumes

Two large volumes published by the University Press Melbourne 1987. Cream linen covered boards protected by a slipcase, a flicker of age on the spines otherwise very good condition.

Reissued from the original French translated by Helen Rosenman.

Volume I – 312 pages deals with the voyages of the Astrolabe 1826-1829 and,

Volume II – pages 313-634 the voyage of the Astrolabe and Zelee 1837-1840.

Nicely illustrated with 29 maps and charts and 56 plates – some in colour. This is the first account in English of two important voyages to Australasia the Pacific and the Antarctic. The Astrolabe visited Hobart Town, Jervis Bay and Port Jackson whilst the second voyage went to Port Essington as well as Tasmania (again) and the Antarctic. A superb account of the people and natural history encountered. An essential Antarctic item for that element.

Two Special French Voyages by D’Urville

$170.00

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A Voyage Round the World – Captain George Shelvocke – Seafarers’ Library Issue 1928

With Introduction and Notes by W.G. Perrin F.R. Hist. S Admiralty Librarian, Secretary of the Navy Records Society

Published by the Seafarers’ Library, that is Cassell and Co, London a first of its type 1928. Thick octavo, 262 pages after the xxii Introduction, which adds well to the principal narrative. Foxed along the edges, title and occasionally as is often the case with the thick spongey paper used by the publisher. Still a pretty good copy and rare in a very good dust jacket which has protected the boards well. Illustrated with 7 half tone plates and a map.

George Shelvocke (1675-1742) joined the Royal Navy at 15 and rose to second lieutenant during two long wars with the French. When the war ended he received no pension which drove him to take up privateering. In 1719 he was given charge of the Speedwell to accompany John Clipperton in the Success to take Spanish vessels in the Pacific. Shortly after leaving England Shelvocke deliberately parted ways with Clipperton to control his own fortunes. In the Pacific they were wrecked at Juan Fernandez. They managed to build a sizeable vessel out of recovered timbers and fresh hewn trees. They carried on and took their first Spanish vessel, occupied it and renamed it the Happy Return. They proceeded to take several prizes accumulating treasure along the way. They sailed north to California and made various remarks on the territory including the prospects of finding gold. From there they sailed the Pacific to Canton and from there back to England. Shelvocke was accused of hiding some of the treasure to his advantage … but got away with it … and wrote this account. A worthy read it was taken on Pacific voyages by all those that were to come after him.

On rounding the Horn his second shot a black albatross. Later, Wordsworth read the account and suggested to Samuel Taylor Coleridge that the shooting could be a useful device for his epic poem that was to be The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.

Shelvocke after and in the mode of Dampier – before Anson and the great Navigators.

$40.00

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Lady Nelson (Tasmania) Ship’s Manual.

Published by the Tasmanian Sail Training Association in 2003 a first printing.

A Training Manual and guide to the operating systems aboard the Sail Training Vessel Lady Nelson.

Anyone who has been to Hobart has heard of the Lady Nelson a magnificent working replica of her 1799 namesake which had such an important place in Australian maritime history … more so Tasmania.

The original vessel a unique sliding keel design was built at Deptford, London. She sailed for Australia under the command of Grant and was the first vessel to pass west to east through the Bass Strait. Grant completed significant coastal charts of the southern mainland regions … the advantage of the sliding keel was the vessel could get in close in shallow water. Later the Lady Nelson was to play an important part in the history of Tasmania or Van Diemen’s Land as it was then known … including being part of relocation of convicts from Norfolk Island.

The replica is a beauty and the manual does it justice. Just under 200 pages, octavo, spiral bound. It starts proper with a useful history of the original vessel and, the replica which was launched in 1988 having taken two year to build.

The manual comprises sections … Basic re rigging, mooring lines, heaving, helming, knots, lookout duties. Then intermediate … preparing for sea, sails and handling, anchoring, bells etc, closing down, man overboard! fires. The advanced section … emergency steering, fuels systems, freshwater systems, sullage and bilge, alarms etc. Safety includes first aid and “abandon ship!” … and a final catch-all includes a glossary of terms and a useful “where is it” for those on the find.

An interesting book for anyone interested in the maritime and especially anyone coming to Hobart who wants to achieve a greater experience of the grand Lady herself

A scarce and interesting item the Lady Nelson Manual

$40.00

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Bligh’s Bad Language – Passion, Power and Theatre on the Bounty – Greg Dening

A first edition of a special Bligh book.

Published by Cambridge University Press in 1992. Octavo, 445 pages with illustrations, charts and diagrams. A very good copy … as new except for a hint of a score mark on the front dust jacket, now protected in Brodart.

What was going on in England and in the Navy. Was Bligh bad tempered of just ill prepared for what unfolded. Dening a Professor of History at the upmarket Melbourne University provides and extensive view on the reality of the Bounty Mutiny …

Bligh misunderstood and misunderstanding

$40.00

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Aphrodite’s Island – The European Discovery of Tahiti – Anne Salmond.

The author a distinguished Professor of Anthropology at Auckland University.

Large thick octavo, 537 pages, nicely illustrated. Published by the University of California Press. Los Angeles and London in 2010. A fine copy. A heavy book which may require and overseas postage surcharge.

Comprehensive and sophisticated drawing on many references including Tahitian oral histories and artefacts as well as European manuscripts. A book that explores Tahiti and the European interactions with an outward perspective. The perceptions of the Tahitian and the fascinations of the Europeans.

Tahiti and the arrival of the Europeans – a comprehensive work by Salmond

$50.00

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Shipwrecks – Being the Historical Account of Shipwrecks along the Victorian Coast from Cape Otway to Port Fairy 1836-1914 – Margaret Mackenzie.

Two Voyages to the South Seas – Dumont D’Urville – 2 Volumes

A Voyage Round the World – Captain George Shelvocke – Seafarers’ Library Issue 1928

Lady Nelson (Tasmania) Ship’s Manual.

Bligh’s Bad Language – Passion, Power and Theatre on the Bounty – Greg Dening

Aphrodite’s Island – The European Discovery of Tahiti – Anne Salmond.

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