Mining and Geology

A Strange Career – The Life and Adventures of J. G. Jebb [South America and Mexico] – 1895

John Gladwyn Jebb led as an adventurous life as could be possible. This book was compiled by his widow and carries the introduction of none other than possibly the greatest adventure writer H Rider Haggard.

English born Jebb’s adventures began as a military man in India. Soon he was conducting privately funded explorations into Central and Southern America. Involved in numerous business dealings… helped to start White Line … was in involved in armaments. He moved to the US and the Wild West … bear hunting, gold mining and a few conflicts with local bandits and Indians. Off to Mexico to make his fortune gold mining (made it and lost it) and much of the later part of the books is about his times in Mexico padded a bit with history of the region.

Published by Blackwood, Edinburgh in 1895 octavo, 271 pages, frontispiece of the great man, illustrated by John Wallce. Pictorial boards nice but a little rubbed especially at the tips. Overall, still a particularly good copy of a rather hard to find book.

Inspiration for Rider Haggard – John Jebb Adventurer

$50.00

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The Struggle of the Penguin Tramway and the Tasmanian Iron Mines at Penguin 1897-1910 – Ron Parnell.

Well this is one of the best local histories we have put eyes on – not only because of the unusual mining connection, but the rivalry between the two major players .. Parnell has done a wonderful job bringing the story to life. There is a movie in this.

Soft covers, 59 pages, illustrated well throughout with maps, diagrams, images etc, effectively self published, no date but 1986 and scarce.

If you get this before you read it skim the chronology on page 52 as it gives you a heads up on what is to come and joins the while together nicely. There is also and extensive bibliography and it’s no surprise to us that Fenton’s “Bush Life in Tasmania” starts the list.

Scarce mining, tramway, Penguin collectable packed with information.

$40.00

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Mawson’s Papers – Innes and Duff – Robyn Mundy’s Copy.

Thick softcover published by The Mawson Institute for Antarctic Research The University of Adelaide in 1990.

Rather scarce and we are not sure why .. maybe they are all tied up with Institutions … maybe it was a pessimistic print run.

Carries the modern book label of adventurer and writer Roby Mundy and a thoughtful note by the gift giver “happy hunting”. The kind message clearly relates to the research Mundy would have been doing for her novel “Nature of Ice” – all about the Mawson Polar expedition, Frank Hurley’s photographs and much more. Mundy also wrote a super book “Cold Coast” which revolves around the first female trapper in Svalbad … another Voyager favourite island group.

Back to the Mawson Papers which are richly described in the unusually paginated work [probably circa 350 pages]. After a brief Forward by Jacka and a Biographical note by same we have various introductory papers re how to use the guide. Not a list of items – everything is described and put into context. Nicely illustrated from Hurley photographs, charts etc … it’s the complete business.

Mawson no more comprehensive source of his work

$80.00

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Queensland Illustrated – 70 Exquisite Views – c1925

Published by A. A. White Brisbane and in our opinion the best of the nostalgic promotional books of the early 20thC. We say that as the images are often vanilla, same size pseudo postcard images.

Here we have a mixture of forma and subjects, some with aboriginal people albeit a bit posed .. the railways shots are varied including a super image of the logging train going through the Barron Gorge. Gympie Gold Mine is still active as is Mount Morgan and the bush images prove a good counterbalance to the Brisbane street scenes which are compared with nowadays rather bereft of people. The trams and very limited motor car activity … the odd horse help date this undated publication.

Landscape (30cm x 24cm) 32 pages, original decorative cover. In really good condition given its age – best we have seen.

Voyager’s favourite early Queensland views

$80.00

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Fossil Tree Fern “Osmundacaulis pruchnikki” – Lune River Tasmania – Rare and unusual Early Jurassic Forest circa 182 Million years old.

A significant piece in terms of size and quality of petrified tree fern “Osmundacaulis pruchnikki” from the Lune River area deep in the southern reaches of Tasmania.

The dating of this location to the middle of the early Jurassic Period (182 Ma) was by isotopic measurements on zircons found in the volcanic sandstone hosting the fossils (Bromfield et al 2007). Also refer the excellent recently updated guide by P. Manchester.

A substantial example weighing 362gm length circa 11cm – by 5cm by 5cm. The extremity is cleaved in the centre of the oval plant core and the core can be seen clearly on top and running down the side.

This region is the area of the world where these plants developed. Twelve tree paratypes (arborescent) ferns and one bracken-like (rhizomatous) fern have been studied in the region. All of the tree ferns belong to the genus Osmundacaulis. This paratype exhbits numerous clear and tight trachioles

The species evolved in this region, the Australian portion of Pangea, which was on the cusp of breaking up circa 200 million years ago. Gradually osmundacaaulis have spread elsewhere, but are limited in the Northern Hemisphere; they appear in North West USA .. whilst examples were only discovered in Eurasia in the year 2000 in northern China.

Significant fossil tree fern from Jurassic Tasmania.

$290.00

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Stone of Destiny [Diamonds] – Ion Idriess

Ion Idriess found this his hardest book to write yet it is another masterpiece of yarn and knowledge all revolving around the elusive diamond

Published by Angus and Robertson, a 1957 edition. Large octavo, 344 pages, decorative “woodcut style” illustrations at most chapter headings. A very good, clean copy.

Diamonds for men – Nice copy

$60.00

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A Strange Career – The Life and Adventures of J. G. Jebb [South America and Mexico] – 1895

The Struggle of the Penguin Tramway and the Tasmanian Iron Mines at Penguin 1897-1910 – Ron Parnell.

Mawson’s Papers – Innes and Duff – Robyn Mundy’s Copy.

Queensland Illustrated – 70 Exquisite Views – c1925

Fossil Tree Fern “Osmundacaulis pruchnikki” – Lune River Tasmania – Rare and unusual Early Jurassic Forest circa 182 Million years old.

Stone of Destiny [Diamonds] – Ion Idriess

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