Limited Editions Club A Voyage to the South Seas

Description: Our author, William Bligh (1754-1817), among other duties, captained the 64 gun "Director" against the Dutch at Camperdown in 1797, and so commanded the "Glatton" in the Battle of Copenhagen that he was personally commended by Lord Nelson. In 1794, the was awarded the gold Medal of the Society of Arts and in 1801 elected a Fellow of the Royal Academy for his services to botany. As governor of New South Wales (1808-1810), he struggled to suppress the vicious rum trade and championed the small settlers of Australia. Yet we know him best as the meanie in the alternate version of the infamous 1789 incident described in the book Mutiny on the Bounty (1932) by the authors Charles Nordhoff and James Norman Hall. More likely, given that he rose to the rank of Admiral, Bligh's character has been variously interpreted. He does not seem to have been unduly tyrannical, but his abusive tongue and his overbearing manner made him unpopular as a commander. Our selection, A Voyage to the South Seas, is William Bligh's version, before, during and after, of mutiny that took place on his watch in the South Seas in 1789. While it may be self-serving, Voyage seems to show a ship's commander succeeding in most instances against incredible odds. In a 23 foot boat, his able seamanship, with compass and quadrant and strict food rations, led him and his fellow castaways back to safety to England, in a matchless feat of superb seamanship through savage seas. Illustrating our edition of that voyage, Geoffrey C. Ingleton fashioned three full-page full-color paintings and 22 in-text line drawings which are printed in olive green. He also drew a map of the Southwest Pacific for the front endleaves, and a plan of the "Bounty's" main rigging for the back endleaves. Both of these are printed in terra cotta on a tan paper. The format was designed by Douglas A. Dunstan, who selected Baskerville type. The Griffin Press of Netley, Australia, set the text, printed the book on a smooth white wove paper, and bound it in a tan homespun linen (to resemble sail cloth?). The front and back covers are printed in terra cotta with nautical silhouettes by Mr. Ingleton, and the titling on the flat spine is stamped in gold leaf on a deep-brown leather label. This is number 499 of 2000 copies, and is signed both by designer Douglas A. Dunstan and illustrator Geoffrey C. Ingleton. The offer includes the eight page Limited Editions Club Monthly Letter and prepublication announcement, as well as the original subscriber envelope. This is a fantastic book for those who love sea voyage accounts or naval adventures. It is so detailed and so thrilling and in some places so frightening. You can't make up stuff like this! Thank you for reading this presentation, and good luck in your searches. Feel free to write me with any questions.

Price: 45 USD

Location: Wexford, Pennsylvania

End Time: 2024-08-05T00:47:31.000Z

Shipping Cost: 7.25 USD