Benham, Daniel

FIRST EDITION, 4to, [iv], 34pp., engraved portrait frontispiece, original dark blue cloth, yellow endpapers, binding slightly worn, rebacked, portrait slightly browned and stained in margins

A fair copy
"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."

Rare. “In 1849 the British Admiralty asked the Moravian Mission Board for the services of a Labrador or Greenland missionary to join the expedition then being fitted out to search for Sir John Franklin. Miertsching... accepted the assignment and joined HMS Investigator... Sailing around Cape Horn, Investigator entered the Arctic seas from the Pacific, attempting to search out a northwest passage. Miertsching and most of the crew did finally make their way across the Arctic and home to England, but only after enduring four Arctic winters and leaving Investigator and a rescue ship abandoned in the ice... During this gruelling experience Miertsching kept a journal, which... is rich in topographical detail and in descriptions of the Eskimo tribes encountered, and relates in dramatic fashion the perils from ice and cold” (Dictionary of Canadian Biography).