Mackenzie, Alexander | "The first and finest edition of one of the most important of Canadian books"

Mackenzie, Alexander

Voyages from Montreal, on the river of St. Laurence, through the continent of North America to the Frozen and Pacific Oceans in the years 1789 and 1793. London: T. Cadell, W. Davies, Cobbet and Morgan, W. Creech, 1801

4to (268 x 210 mm). Half-title, engraved portrait frontispiece, dedication leaf, 3 folding engraved maps, "Map of America.." hand-colored, errata leaf at end; text block uniformly toned with occasional soiling, browning and spotting to preliminaries, repair to lower inner margin of first two gatherings, title & dedication leaves possibly supplied, intermittent marginal losses to head of inner margin where the text block has been abraded (not costing any text), repair to outer margin of a2; Kk⁴-Mm⁴, Xx1, 3C-3G⁴ with closed tears of varying length repaired along inner margin, in many instances through the text but not costing legibility, errata leaf browned; folding maps in relatively better condition, with the usual offsetting, very minor separations along folds, a few reinforcements to verso, including where plates connect to text block. Marbled calf, gilt borders, marbled endpaper; rubbed, worn, and stained, sympathetically rebacked, hinges reinforced with cloth tape. Housed in a cloth clamshell case.

"The first and finest edition of one of the most important of Canadian books ... A fascinating account of the descent of the river now named after this intrepid explorer, who was the first white man to navigate its length from its source in the Great Slave Lake to its mouth in the Arctic Ocean, and the first European to see the Arctic Ocean from Canada. He completed his journey of 2,990 miles in 120 days... [Later] leaving from Fort Chipewyan, he reached the Pacific Ocean by way of Bella Coola River, and thus accomplished the first crossing of the American continent to the north of Mexico. The vast region of the Rocky Mountains and the coastal zone was thus opened up at last, and Mackenzie rose to the top rank of explorers on the American continent... Mackenzie's investigations, although pursued at so early a period of Arctic exploration, were remarkable for their accuracy; Sir John Franklin more than once expressed his surprise at being able to corroborate their correctness in his own explorations several decades later." (Hill).

REFERENCE:

Hill (2004) 1063; Howes M133; Sabin 43414

PROVENANCE:

Marjory & John Todd (bookplate)