The Zoology of the Voyage of H.M.S. Erebus and Terror: The Birds of New Zealand

Pp. 39 + 37 fine monochrome lithographic plates. Later gray cloth with the spine lettered in black, the original green printed wrappers are bound in at rear, sm folio (12.5 x 10 inches). The section by George R. Gray was first published in 3 parts about 1844/1845 and included 22 plates. The volume remained unfinished until 1875, when the work was edited by R. Bowdler Sharpe, who added an appendix and the remaining 15 plates. The 37 plates are numbered 1, 1*, 2 to 11, 11*, 13 to 20, 20*, 21, XXI*, 23 to 35 (collated complete as issued). The expedition of the H.M.S. Erebus and Terror to Antarctica took place in 1839-1843 under the Command of Capt. J.C. Ross - one of the expedition’s principal discoveries was the Ross Ice Shelf. The various volumes documenting this significant expedition were edited by John Richardson and John Edward Gray. Any of the published results of this Antarctic exploratory voyage are quite scarce; this is especially true for the volume on the ‘Birds of New Zealand’ with exquisitely detailed lithographed plates. This work was issued with monochrome (uncolored plates); some copies were hand-colored at a later date. The last hand-colored copy I sold was priced at $4500. This copy is in the original uncolored state. The initials of a previous owner appear on the front green wrapper.