Darwin, Charles, Captain Phillip Parker King, and Captain Robert Fitzroy.

8vo (233 x 148mm.), 3 volumes bound in 4 including the appendix to volume 2, first edition, half-titles, 46 engraved plates, 2 engraved charts, one folding, 8 further folding engraved charts coloured by hand, formerly in endpockets, now separately housed (see below), addenda leaf at end of volume 2, original cloth decorated in blind, the separate folding charts in recent chemise and clamshell case, some foxing to plates and charts, spines slightly sunned

Thomas Scott, Earlston; un-named owner, sale, Peter Arnold, Prahran, Victoria, Australia, 17 September 2007, lot 88

Freeman 10, binding variant a; Norman 584

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, when appropriate.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

A fine set of the official accounts of the voyage of the Beagle. Volume 3 is Darwin's Journal and Remarks, his own account of the Beagle's voyage, and his first published book - it is an outstanding account of natural history exploration which described the fieldwork which ultimately led to On the Origin of Species.

"The five years of the voyage were the most important event in Darwin's intellectual life and in the history of biological science. Darwin sailed with no formal scientific training. He returned a hard-headed man of science, knowing the importance of evidence, almost convinced that species had not always been as they were since the creation but had undergone change... The experiences of his five years... and what they led to, built up into a process of epoch-making importance in the history of thought" (DSB 3:556).

The first volume of the Narrative contains Captain King's account of the expedition in the Adventure between 1826 and 1830, which surveyed the coasts of Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego. The second volume and appendix describe the second voyage of the Beagle under Captain Fitzroy between 1831 and 1836, which visited Brazil, Argentina, Tierra de Fuego, Chile, Peru, the Galapagos Islands, Tahiti, New Zealand, Australia and other islands and countries.