Pacific Islands

WWI Maritime and Travel Original Annotated Photograph Album – Over 180 Images

A most interesting collection spanning the years of WWI and shortly afterwards. Taken and compiled by a marine officer, over 180 original photographs, taken with some expertise, nicely presented in its original Morocco bound photograph album. The photographer has presented each photograph framing it within white borders and added very neatly in white a useful description.

The condition of the photographs is good overall, a few are faded or marked in some way from the passage of time, others are crisp and clean. A few have been removed or fallen out and few are loose inside …we have not studied where they could go … the album is robust and showing minor age wear, the whole package is very presentable and more or less complete. We wish we knew the photographer … he was clearly officer material on the Orontes and had a wife and child … we have included his image as the “thumbnail” … does anyone know who he was …?

The album can be split into two distinct periods. The first, before January 1919 being mainly onboard the HMT Orontes a vessel that plied the England – Australia route for the Orient line. With the outbreak of WWI, it became a troop carrier. The photographer appears to have also served on SS Derbyshire in a similar capacity. During this phase he took images of a number of famous vessels used in the war effort and numerous images of views, landmarks, architecture, and the people at various ports of call.

The second element post January 1919 is devoted to a circumnavigation on SS Cufic which head across the Atlantic to Nova Scotia, down to the Panama Canal and across the Pacific to New Zealand and Australia, Durban, Cape Town, and Home.

Photographs of vessels include … RMS Mauretania; Kaiseren Auguste Victoria [surrendered in 1919 and used to bring American troops home]; HMS Renown [in New York Harbour with the Prince of Wales on board]; HMS Carpathia [of Titanic rescue fame and later torpedoed and sunk]; RMS Pannonia; SS Explorer; SS Demosthenes [used to carry Australian troops]; HMS Sydney [in Colombo Harbour just after the sinking of the German Cruiser Emden]; SS Derbyshire [Colombo – Rangoon Line]; HMT Osterley; SS Cufic and HMT Orontes.

Examples of the touring images include …

The Flatiron (previously Fuller) skyscraper – New York
Washington Arch – New York
Statue of Liberty – New York
Top of Woolworth Tower – New York
5th Avenue – New York
A Glimpse of Wall Street – New York
Brooklyn Bridge and Williamsburg Bridge – New York
Boston views
The Citadel Quebec
Main Street Gibraltar
A “Blimp” convoying
A Glimpse of the US army
Panama Canal scenes
On route to Calcutta
Homeward bound in the Bay of Biscay
Cinnamon Gardens Colombo
Cape St Vincent – Portugal [Incorrectly described Spanish]
Hindu Temple South India
Colombo Harbour
Ox waggon Rangoon Burma
On the Temple steps – India
Native of South India
Children of North India
Hindu dockworker
The Pagoda Calcutta
Burmese Shrine to the God Dagan
The Schegadon Pagodas Rangoon
The lake Rangoon
A Burmese girl off to the well
Anzac Day 1918 some fancy costumes
Sierra Leone West Africa
Leaving Table Bay HMS Britannia escorting
South African troops on board – the first bugle call – “Cookhouse!”
Scene in Native Quarter Durban
Australian sheep Hamilton Victoria
Sydney Zoo
Wellington New Zealand
Tahiti South Sea Islands
Main Street Papeete
Tahitian Friends
Papeete from Crows Nest
A Harbour view Tahiti
A big dam Panama Canal
Electric Mule Panama Canal
Leaving Liverpool Jan 18, 1919 – “Bon Voyage” [a self portrait]
The first port Louisbourg – Cape Breton Island [Nova Scotia]
Snow scene St John Nova Scotia
Lock gates and numerous others – Panama Canal
“Star of Holland” mid -Pacific [a US Tall Ship]
New Zealand including memorial to Robert Scott
Melbourne – picking up the Pilot
Quarantine procedures in Melbourne
A number in Sydney, Newcastle, Brisbane … and the way home via South Africa

Superb, interesting unique photographic record. Now over 100 years old.

$590.00

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R.L.S. [Robert Louis Stevenson] in the South Seas – An Intimate Photographic Record

A first edition of this special book for lovers of Robert Louis Stevenson, author of Treasure Island. Published by Mainstream Press in 1986. Small quarto, 192 pages profusely illustrated.

In 1888 R.L.S. set of with his family into the Pacific to write about the South Seas and its Islands. He took photographic equipment and a magic lantern with him intending to produce his own illustrations. Many though lost this is the first publication of a those that remain. R.L.S. was a prolific letter writers and these along with some short essays provide an excellent narrative in which to display these photographic gems.

R.L.S. in the Pacific Lost and Found Images.

$40.00

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Queen Emma – R.W. Robson – Scarce New Guinea

Few New Guinea expatriates have not heard of Queen Emma (Emma Coe) a Samoan-American who built a trading Empire and lived with great style a Ralum near Rabaul in New Britain. An extraordinary account.

A really rather scarce book.

A first edition published by Pacific Publications, Sydney in 1965. Octavo, 239 pages including an Appendix summarising the de Rays Swindle of 1877-1884 of which there is an Emma connection [A story in itself]. Another Appendix summarising Attacks by Natives on European 1876-1904 … they were busy! … and a useful index. End paper maps and illustrated from period photographs. The dust jacket has quite a large piece missing from the back but holds up rather well in Brodart. Internally very clean.

A Queen Emma amongst Cannibals

$60.00

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George Bass 1771-1803: His Discoveries, Romantic Life and Tragic Disappearance – Keith Bowden – First Edition 1952

A very good first edition of this well researched and written book on Bass.

Published by the Oxford University Press Melbourne in 1952. Octavo, 171 pages with illustrations and a fine dust jacket.

The author Keith Macrae Bowden was the author of the official Australian Dictionary of Biography re Bass and therefore holds a certain authority on the subject explorer.

After various introduction we have a family history and the first naval activity on HMS Shark and HMS Reliance. Off to Australia and the exploratory adventures on the Tom Thumb before a trip to South Africa. Time in Port Jackson and the discovery of coal before the “Discovery of the Bass Strait” and the final whale boat voyage. Plans for a fortune and his Pacific voyages and on to South America and his disputable fate.

Nice appendices on the Tom Thumb; Source of Information and a succinct listing of the subjects achievements.

George Bass a fairly full life

$50.00

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Rare Pacific Voyage Books from the Collection of David Parsons – Part I. Dampier to Cook.

Hordern House have done a number of similar works. This by far the best. Published in 2005.

English born David Parsons was educated at Corpus Christi, Oxford. He spent his adult life in the USA where applied his mathematical skills as a top actuary. The collection written up by the House was the first of two parts (see our copy of Part II sold separately), the most important works we would say in chronological order up to Cook.

Parsons had decided to focus in on early Spanish/ Portuguese exploration. The proceeds from this magnificent collection would have provided a pretty healthy budget.

Octavo, unpaginated, circa 125 pages, magnificently illustrated. Contains all of the key works one would expect, often of super quality or special provenance. Generally organised as follows … Dampier to Swift; The Anson Expedition; The South Pacific before Cook; The North Pacific before Cook; Cook. As always an excellent description of content and relevance of each work with a helpful selection of images

Super reference of a collection to envy for sure.

$60.00

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Trimaran to Tahiti – D.E. Barry-Evans

Doug Barry-Evans preferred to be called DE. A WWII naval aircraft pilot born in the UK but spent most of his life in New Zealand.

A First edition 1978, published by Richards o Auckland, NZ. Small quarto, 216 pages plus appendices. Really well illustrated and with really good technical information regarding the boat in the back section. A very good copy

From New Zealand to Tahiti an 1,800 mile there and back voyage with lots of excitement and adventure along the way.

A special sailing adventure with good detail on the islands visited

$30.00

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WWI Maritime and Travel Original Annotated Photograph Album – Over 180 Images

R.L.S. [Robert Louis Stevenson] in the South Seas – An Intimate Photographic Record

Queen Emma – R.W. Robson – Scarce New Guinea

George Bass 1771-1803: His Discoveries, Romantic Life and Tragic Disappearance – Keith Bowden – First Edition 1952

Rare Pacific Voyage Books from the Collection of David Parsons – Part I. Dampier to Cook.

Trimaran to Tahiti – D.E. Barry-Evans

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