1789 An Account of the Pelew Islands, Situated in the Western Part of the Pacific Ocean

Description

Early Edition, Folding Maps, Illustrated, Leather Binding

The fourth edition of this work, which was first published the year prior.

Illustrated with a portrait frontispiece and folding map. Collated, complete.

George Keate offers a narrative based on the journals of Captain Henry Wilson and his officers, recounting the wreck of the East India Company packet Antelope on a reef near Palau in 1783.

The survivors were treated with kindness by the islanders, building a salvaged craft to reach Macao. Prince Lee Bo travelled with the crew to England, where his presence captivated society before he tragically died of smallpox. He was one of the first people from the Pacific Islands to visit Great Britain.

ESTC N16029

With the bookplate of Walter Hoo to the front pastedown.

Keate's account enriched European understanding of Palau and is often credited with contributing to the “noble savage” literary trope.