A Series of Fourteen Sketches made During the Voyage up Wellington Channel in Search of Sir John Franklin, K.C.H., and the Missing Crews of H.M. Discovery Ships Erebus and Terror; Together with a short account of each drawing.

Day and Sons, May 1, 1855. Folio, 365 x 270 mm. Title, 6, [1, list of subscribers]; 14 tinted lithographic plates on 13 sheets. Publisher’s brown cloth with title label on upper cover, gilt, small repaired tear to outer margin of first plate, a very nice copy in the original binding.

FIRST EDITION of a scarce work and one of the three important Franklin Search colour plate books (the others being Cresswell and Browne).

May served as mate aboard the Resolute during the expedition of 1850-1851 and led a depot laying party as far as Cape Gillman on Bathurst Island, travelling 371 miles in 34 days. He also undertook a short exploratory journey around Griffith Island. The present work records his impressions of the expedition of 1852-1854 when he served as Lieutenant in the Assistance under the overall command of Sir Edward Belcher. During this expedition he undertook a journey on which he covered 600 miles in 62 days. May retired from the Navy as a Commander in 1854 and went on to a successful career as an artist: the bas-relief on the pedestal of Franklin’s statue in Waterloo Place, London, is from his design.

Abbey Travel 646.