Rare Book Monthly
Book Catalogue Reviews - May - 2004 Issue
Australian Journeys<br>From Hordern House
Strong winds were evidently one of the difficulties experienced on the McKinlay expedition. Item 61
There were others who also attempted to find Burke and Wills. Item 61 is John Davis’ Tracks of McKinlay and Party Across Australia… Davis was part of McKinlay’s expedition and they too suffered hardships along the way. $3,600.
The Horn Scientific Expedition was a journey of discovery in 1894 financed by William Austin Horn. This relatively short (14-week) trip led to discoveries about plants, animals, geology, and native people in the area of the MacDonnell Ranges. On return, the various scientists involved wrote up their findings and they were published in the 4-volume set Report on the Work of the Horn Scientific Expedition to Central Australia, edited by Baldwin Spencer. Item 37 is a set inscribed by William A. Horn, who joined in part of the journey himself, to his wife Penelope Horn. This copy was later part of the library of the major American collector H. Bradley Martin. Item 37. $44,000.
The Horn Expedition’s commander, Charles Winnecke, also produced a report on the journey. Originally planned to be part of the previous set, there was a dispute and Winnecke published his report separately. It’s called Journal of the Horn Scientific Expedition… Item 38. $3,750. Item 39 is an uncommon Horn Expedition item. It is the official “rule book” created for the journey describing such things as how specimens are to be collected and disputes resolved. This copy is inscribed by William Horn. $3,850.
Charles Sturt was another major Australian explorer who undertook many travels to the interior lands. Item 74 is Two Expeditions into the Interior of Southern Australia, during the years 1828, 1829, 1830 and 1831… Item 75 is a Narrative of an Expedition into Central Australia, describing his last journey and published in 1849. Sturt’s travels tended to be harrowing experiences with it being a wonder he survived. For a while, he was blinded. One thing about the interior of Australia is that it can be very hot and very dry. Ultimately, he never reached the center of the continent because the desert became too harsh, and, of course, he never found the great inland sea he imagined was there. Priced at $8,000 and $27,000.
David Carnegie was an important explorer of Western Australia. His journey brought him through more than his share of difficult territory, including the Gibson and Great Sandy Deserts. Much of this has changed little since Carnegie’s day. Carnegie would go on to explore in Africa, where he would be felled in Nigeria by a poison dart, taking his life before he reached the age of 30. Item 16 is Carnegie’s personal collection, including journals of other explorers, maps and charts he produced, a map of his proposed journey from Nigeria to Cairo which cost him his life, and more. The collection had remained in the Carnegie family’s possession until the 1980s when it passed to an outside collector. $135,000.
For those thinking in American terms, all prices quoted here are in Australian dollars. Australian dollars are currently valued at about US $0.70.
Hordern House can be found online at www.hordern.com or reached by telephone at (02) 9356 4411.
