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British Royal Navy officer, explorer, and cartographer (172801779) who led three voyages of exploration to the Pacific and Southern Oceans between 1768 and 1779. He completed the first recorded circumnavigation of the main islands of New Zealand and led the first recorded visit by Europeans to the east coast of Australia and the Hawaiian Islands. Coveted ink signature, "Jam: Cook,” on an off-white 2.75 x 1.75 slip. Archivally double-matted with an engraved portrait of Cook by James Basire the Elder (created as a frontispiece to the second voyage proceedings), and framed under UV conservation glass to an overall size of 17.25 x 21.75. In fine condition. Signatures of Captain James Cook, who died at the hands of native Hawaiians at the age of 50, are of the utmost rarity; the Auction and Book Sales Archive (ABSA), which incorporates the records of American Book Prices Current (ABPC), record only three autograph letters signed and three documents signed by Cook as having been sold at auction since 1980, the most recent example being a document of 1759, having been sold at Christie's in 2019. A momentous occasion that represents the first James Cook signature that we have ever offered.
This item is Pre-Certified by PSA/DNA
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