OBSERVATIONS UPON THE WINDWARD COAST OF AFRICA, THE RELIGION, CHARACTER, CUSTOMS, &c. OF THE NATIVES; WITH A SYSTEM UPON WHICH THEY MAY BE CIVILIZED, AND A KNOWLEDGE ATTAINED OF THE INTERIOR OF THIS EXTRAORDINARY QUARTER OF THE GLOBE; AND UPON THE NATURAL AND COMMERCIAL RESOURCES OF THE COUNTRY, MADE IN THE YEARS 1805 AND 1806.
Corry, Joseph:
London: Printed for G. and W. Nicol and James Asperne by W. Bulmer, 1807. xiv,[1],163pp. plus one map and eight handcolored engraved plates (seven folding). Quarto. Contemporary paper boards, printed label. Covers soiled and stained, spine abraded, edges worn. Bookplate of John Wilkinson on front pastedown, engraved bookplate of Charles Ll. Braithwaite tipped in on front free endpaper. Occasional minor foxing and stains. A very good copy. In a half morocco clamshell case. A finely illustrated account of Corry's travels to West Africa in the early years of the 19th century. There is much information regarding the region's inhabitants, particularly their religion and customs, as well as the area's natural productions and commercial resources. In addition to advancing England's commercial prospects, the author was also interested in ending the practice of slavery. To this end, the text includes the author's letter to Lord Howick abolishing the slave trade. The author hoped that "if in the most remote degree, I excite the interference of my countrymen in behalf of the African, extend our commerce, and enlarge the circle of civilized and Christian society, I shall think that I have neither travelled, nor written in vain." The work has eight handcolored aquatints based on drawings by Corry, including one of a Mandingo chief and his headman in their costumes. The remaining plates are views of different locales as viewed from offshore. All of the illustrations are attractive and the hand coloring is particularly well- executed. A very good copy of an early 19th- century British travel account in a part of the world seldom portrayed in such superior illustrations as found here. ABBEY 278. OCLC 3902546.
(Item ID: WRCAM35390) $10,000.00