Publisher Description

An admirer of Captain Cook, Otto von Kotzebue (1787-1846) was a leading navigator, in Russian service, circumnavigating the globe three times. His 1815 expedition set out to find a passage through the Arctic, study the coastlines of Kamchatka and Alaska, and explore the Pacific. Among the personnel were the naturalist Chamisso and the artist Choris, who both contributed valuable information to the published account, while Eschscholtz, a physician, collected zoological specimens. Originally published in 1821 in Russian and German, this English translation, presented with many plates and charts, appeared the same year and formed part of Darwin's library aboard the Beagle. Volume 1 details the expedition's inception and presents the journal of the voyage, with observations of Cape Horn, Polynesia, Siberia, Alaska, California, and Hawaii. Meteorological details are regularly recorded, but this account is notable for its vivid descriptions of the peoples encountered.

Table of Contents

Translator's preface H. E. Lloyd; Introduction I. F. Krusenstern; Instructions for the astronomical and physical operations on the voyage to the North Pole J. C. Hoerner; Preface Otto von Kotzebue; Preparations; Journal of the voyage: 1. From Cronstadt to Copenhagen; 2. From Copenhagen to England; 3. From Plymouth to Teneriffe; 4. From Teneriffe to Brazil. St Catherine; 5. From St Catherine to the coast of Chili. Conception; 6. From the Bay of Conception to Kamtschatka; 7. From Kamtschatka to the newly discovered Kotzebue's Sound, behind Beering's Straits; 8. From Kotzebue's Sound to Oonalashka; 9. From Oonalashka to California; 10. From the coast of California to the Sandwich Islands.

Promotional "Headline"

A three-volume translated account, published in 1821, of the pioneering Russian expedition that mapped the coast of Siberia and Alaska.

Description for Bookstore

Otto von Kotzebue (1787-1846) was a leading navigator of his age, circumnavigating the globe three times. His 1815 expedition set out to find a passage through the Arctic, investigate the coastlines of Kamchatka and Alaska, and explore the Pacific. Published in 1821, this three-volume translated account was in Darwin's library aboard the Beagle.

Description for Library

Otto von Kotzebue (1787-1846) was a leading navigator of his age, circumnavigating the globe three times. His 1815 expedition set out to find a passage through the Arctic, investigate the coastlines of Kamchatka and Alaska, and explore the Pacific. Published in 1821, this three-volume translated account was in Darwin's library aboard the Beagle.

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