In 1828 a Danish expedition was sent out from Copenhagen under the command of the naval officer and explorer Wilhelm August Graah (1793 1863). Its goal was to locate lost Norse settlements on the coast of Greenland, which had existed in certain places from around the turn of the millennium until their collapse some centuries later. The Danes did not find any settlement where they searched on the eastern coast, and the men endured harrowing conditions and near starvation during three winters. First published in Danish in 1832 and reissued here in its 1837 English translation, Graah's work...

In 1865, the Swedish geologist Carl Wilhelm Paijkull (1836-69) made a voyage from Copenhagen to Iceland, a country that was still little understood by the rest of Europe. In the course of a trip that had a chiefly scientific purpose, Paijkull noted not only the geological features of the island, but also many salient aspects of Icelandic culture in a detailed yet readable style. The book features a number of striking engravings of natural features, including the volcano Hekla, as well as depictions of Icelanders engaging in activities such as drying fish or crossing a river. Paijkull ranges...

Son of an Arctic whaler, William Scoresby (1789 1857) made the first of many voyages to northern latitudes when he was just ten years old. Later a scientist and clergyman, he wrote on a wide range of topics, and his observations on the Arctic prompted further exploration of the region. The two works reissued here together draw on his experience of seafaring in difficult conditions. First published in 1835, Memorials of the Sea is coloured by Scoresby's belief in divine providence. He discusses the observance of the Sabbath at sea, and considers the Mary Russell murders of 1828, where a ship's...

Following distinguished naval service during the Napoleonic Wars, Edward Chappell (1792 1861) took part in two voyages patrolling British fisheries in North America. The second of these, in 1814, is recounted in this journal, first published in 1817. Illustrated with several engravings, Chappell's narrative dwells in particular upon the Inuit, who were little understood by Europeans at the time. Knowing only a few Inuit words, Chappell traded with them and was admitted to their homes. Though somewhat superficial and patronising, his descriptions revised previous accounts and brought new...

This biography of the naval officer and explorer Sir Albert Hastings Markham (1841 1918) was published in 1927 by two relatives (both professional authors), using the detailed journals which he kept from 1862. Markham was the cousin of Sir Clements Markham, the historian and geographer, and was greatly influenced by him. Having volunteered for Arctic service, he was rejected by the Admiralty, but took a period of leave in which he went to Baffin Bay as second mate on a whaler. (His account of this voyage, and several other works, are also reissued in this series.) Though best remembered for...

Published in 1884 and illustrated with over 100 of his own drawings and maps, this two-volume work by the doctor and naturalist Robert McCormick (1800-90) provides an account of his voyages in the Arctic with William Parry and in the Antarctic with James Clark Ross, noting also his part in the search for Sir John Franklin. Incorporating a very detailed autobiography, McCormick's work also provides many details relating to natural history and geology. Volume 1 is mainly devoted to his Antarctic voyage (1839-43), during which he also visited St Helena, the Kerguelen Islands, Australia, New...

Published in 1884 and illustrated with over 100 of his own drawings and maps, this two-volume work by the doctor and naturalist Robert McCormick (1800-90) provides an account of his voyages in the Arctic with William Parry and in the Antarctic with James Clark Ross, noting also his part in the search for Sir John Franklin. Incorporating a very detailed autobiography, McCormick's work also provides many details relating to natural history and geology. Volume 2 describes his role in the 1852-4 mission to find Franklin in the Arctic, including an open boat voyage up the Wellington Channel. The...

In 1759, David Crantz (or Cranz) was sent to Greenland for a year by the Moravian Church. Writing in German, Crantz (1723-77) published in 1765 his detailed observations on the country, its people and their way of life, including a history of the Moravian mission there. This English translation appeared in two volumes in 1820, prepared by staff at the Fulneck School in West Yorkshire, where a Moravian community existed. The text is illustrated with several engravings that depict landscapes as well as kayaks, weapons and tools used by the Greenlanders, providing a valuable visual record of...

In 1759, David Crantz (or Cranz) was sent to Greenland for a year by the Moravian Church. Writing in German, Crantz (1723-77) published in 1765 his detailed observations on the country, its people and their way of life, including a history of the Moravian mission there. This English translation appeared in two volumes in 1820, prepared by staff at the Fulneck School in West Yorkshire, where a Moravian community existed. The text is illustrated with several engravings that depict landscapes as well as kayaks, weapons and tools used by the Greenlanders, providing a valuable visual record of...

The American explorer Charles Francis Hall (1821-71) made two voyages to the Arctic to determine the fate of Sir John Franklin's lost expedition. While there, he lived with Inuit, learning their language and adopting their way of life. Edited after his death and published in 1879, this account of his second expedition, from 1864 to 1869, brings the conditions he endured vividly to life. Two punishing sledge journeys to King William Island revealed evidence of Franklin's encampment there, but also the stark fact that rumours of survivors were unfounded. The work, which contains a number of...