Description

The first edition of the foundation work by the first English Governor is a highly significant book that describes the journey to Botany Bay and the foundations of modern Australia. The book is based on the governor’s journals and despatches, assembled by the London publisher Stockdale. It covers events from March 1787 to September 1788 and includes a chapter on the fauna of New South Wales, appendices detailing ship routes, and a list of convicts sent to New South Wales. It features seven folding engraved charts, 46 engraved plates, and excellent maps by John Hunter and William Dawes, including the first map of the Sydney Cove settlement. The book is bound in a 1970s binding of half red morocco with gilt ship ornaments on the spine.

Davidson emphasizes the importance of this volume as an authentic record of the first settlement, and Wantrup notes it as a key work essential to any serious collection of Australian books.