A Variety of Material from the Antiquariaat Forum and Asher Rare Books
- by Michael Stillman
One of John Webber's drawings from Cook's third voyage.
Alphonse Pinart provides a catalogue of artifacts collected in what was at the time Russian Alaska, though the catalogue itself was published in 1872, after the territory's acquisition by the United States: CataloguedesCollectionsrapportéesdel'AmériqueRusse(aujourd'huiterritoired'Aliaska). This is the only edition of this description of 266 items, ranging from lamps to harpoons, masks, bags, skulls, etc., collected in Alaska, mostly on Kodiac Island. The items were displayed in the Museum of Natural History in Paris. Item 159. €2,750 (US $3,392).
Item 195 is a rare collection of plates illustrating scenes from Capt. James Cook's third and final voyage. The collection is entitled ViewsintheSouthSeas,fromdrawingsbythelateJamesWebber,draftsmanonboardtheResolution,CaptainJamesCooke,fromtheyear1776to1780.Whoever wrote the title needed a better proofreader, as the artist was John, not James, Webber, and Cook spelled his name without an “e” on the end. It contains 16 hand-colored aquatint plates of various places Cook's expedition visited, the set being issued in 1808. €50,000 (US $61,678).
