"[Lot of 2] Spitsbergen or New Greenland [and] Chart Shewing the Different Courses Steered by His Majestys Sloop Racehorse from July 3d to August 22d", Phipps, Constantine John

This lot includes two scarce charts published in 1774 in publications related to the voyages of English explorer Constantine John Phipps, 2nd Baron Mulgrave. In 1773, Phipps commanded the ships Racehorse and Carcass on an expedition to the North Pole. His crew included the young Lord Horatio Nelson as a sailor.

A. Spitsbergen or New Greenland, by Thomas Bowen, from The Journal of a Voyage Undertaken ... Towards the North Pole (7.9 x 7.0"). This small chart outlines a portion of the coastline of Spitsbergen, the largest island in the Svalbard archipelago in northern Norway. It delineates the tracks of the Racehorse and Carcass. The chart also locates the "Track of the Ice" and an area where both ships were frozen. The compass rose notes the Meridian of London. Engraved by Thomas Bowen. Condition: Issued folding with some moderate soiling that is more prominent along one of the folds. There is a light spot at top left and some extraneous creasing.

B. Chart Shewing the Different Courses Steered by His Majestys Sloop Racehorse from July 3d to August 22d, by John Russell, from A Voyage Towards the North Pole (21.9 x 9.3"). This detailed chart follows the routes of the Racehorse and Carcass in the icy waters around Spitsbergen and North East Land (Nordaustlandet) in the summer of 1773. Waygats or Hinlopen Straits is identified, and several smaller islands and bays are named. A note near the Seven Islands reads, "From this Mountain neither Land nor Water was to be seen to the Northward, the Ice appeared Flat & unbroken." Engraved by John Russell. Condition: Issued folding with light toning, scattered foxing, and soiling.

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Condition: B

See description above.