Published by John Lane The Bodley Head, London, 1931
Seller: Rare Aviation Books, Millers Point, NSW, Australia
First Edition
£ 55.15
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Add to basketTall octavo, red cloth, spine and cover embossed with gilt lettering, xx, 472 pp., frontispiece, illustrated throughout with numerous black-and-white plates (five black-and-white plates, 35 double-sided black-and-white-plates), three fold-out maps and three diagrams included. A section with a reproduction of Andrée's diary includes side notes. Spine ends a little bumped, endpapers foxed, spotting on fore-edge and tail of text block, spotting on leaves throughout; otherwise a very good copy First English edition. This extensive volume covers the extraordinary story of the discovery of the lost Andrée expedition to the North Pole. S. A. Andrée, Nils Strindberg and Knut Fraenkel embarked on their balloon journey in 1897 but were given up for lost when they failed to return. Thirty-three years later, a Norwegian expedition intent on scientific research and sealing discovered the remains of the Andrée camp on White Island. These remains included the original expedition's tools, apparatus, and, most importantly, Andree's diary and the group's cameras containing undeveloped images of their journey. The volume covers the lives of Andrée, Strindberg and Fraenkel, reconstructs the contents of the documents found on White Island and reveals the photographs taken by the ill-fated trio. A previous owner's inscription on the front loose endpaper reads: " Hugh McLellan A present to himself! Jan:15th, 1931".