JOURNALS OF TWO EXPEDITIONS OF DISCOVERY IN NORTH-WEST AND WESTERN AUSTRALIA during the years 1837, 38, and 39. Describing many newly discovered, important, and fertile districts, by GREY, George.: - 1841

London, T. and W. Boone, 1841. with observations on the moral and physical condition of the aboriginal inhabitants, &c., &c. FIRST EDITION 1841, 2 volumes, complete set with all plates and maps, 8vo, approximately 225 x 140 mm, 9 x 5½ inches, 22 engraved plates (6 are hand-coloured, 5 depicting Aboriginal cave drawings, the 6th as the frontispiece to Volume II shows a native warrior), two large folding maps by Arrowsmith in pocket inside upper cover of Volume II, numerous illustrations in the text. Pages: Volume 1: (2 adverts), xiv, 1-412, followed by 16 pages of adverts; Volume 2: 4 pages advertising John Goulds Birds of Australia, vii, [1], 1-482, bound in the original publisher's blind stamped cloth, rebacked with original back strip laid on, gilt title and gilt vignettes of Australian fauna at tail, small amateur repairs to head of spines, new cloth just showing at tail of spine and on hinges, original pale yellow endpapers retained. Cloth bindings faded, one or two ink spots and water spots to covers, tiny bump to 1 top corner of Volume II, slight foxing to margins of some plates, 1 map has a few small neat repairs to folds on blanks side, very occasional small light brown mark to margins, inner paper hinges cracked, 2 sections have inner margins neatly strenghened with bookbinder's cloth, nowhere near text, otherwise a very good set. Volume II has appendices on mammals, reptiles, amphibians by John Edward Gray; on birds by John Gould; and on insects by Adam White. " Grey's expeditions were the first to examine the previously ignored north-west interior of the continent, and he discovered much useful territory. The inland explorations of Grey and Lushington, complemented by the associated coastal explorations of Wickham and Stokes in the Beagle, were a major advance in the discovery of the Australian continent" In the first expedition Grey was badly wounded by a spear, and was forced to abandon the expedition, "Ferguson". See: Jonathan Wantrup, Australian Rare Books, 1788-1900, page 383, No.131. Ferguson, Bibliography of Australia, Volume 3, pages 194-5, No. 3228. MORE IMAGES ATTACHED TO THIS LISTING, ALL ZOOMABLE, FURTHER IMAGES ON REQUEST. POSTAGE AT COST.