1856 – Expedition to China Sea & Japan – Commodore Perry | Perry Hawkes – 3v

First and only complete edition of Commodore Perry’s Japan Expedition!

Matthew Perry was one of the most important American Naval officers during the 19th-century. While he was notable for his involvement in the War of 1812 and the Mexican-American War, his most famous accomplishment came as the leader of a voyage to Japan beginning in 1852 aboard the East India Squadron. This series of short visits sought to pursue Japanese trade treaties, but Perry and his crew discovered much more – Japanese and Chinese cultures, politics, coal mining and agriculture, as well as attempts at occupation of Formosa. While many events came from this expedition, according to Hill,

“the most important result was that the visit contributed to the collapse of the feudal regime and to the modernization of Japan”

The events of this expedition were recorded by Perry and Francis Hawks in the 1856 account “Narrative of the Expedition of an American Squadron to the China Seas and Japan.”

This first ‘House of Representatives’ edition includes reports of Perry’s topographical discovers as well as scientific and astrological studies. It is printed in three volumes with incredible illustrations throughout.

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Narrative of the expedition of an American squadron to the China Seas and Japan : performed in the years 1852, 1853, and 1854
• Author(s): Matthew Calbraith Perry; Francis Lister Hawks
• Contributor(s): Francis Lister Hawks (Editor)
• Publisher: Washington : A.O.P. Nicholson
• Edition: First edition, 1856.
• Binding: Hardcover
• Format: (4to), three-volume set
• Size:  11.75 in x 9.75 in (30 cm x 25 cm)
• Collation:
  • Vol. 1: xvii, [1], 537, [1] pp
  • Vol. 2: [8], 414, [4], XI, [3] pp
  • Vol. 3: XLIII, [1], 705, [1] pp
    • Additional printing of vol 3 included
• Illustrations: 132 lithographic plates; 18 folding maps; numerous in-text woodcuts; 352 full-page woodcut star charts
• Contents Include:
  • Official narrative of the Japan expedition
  • Topographical and coastal surveys
  • Scientific and astronomical observations
  • Descriptions of Japanese and Chinese society and industry
  • Reports concerning Formosa and regional geopolitics
• Reference(s): Sabin 30968; Wenckstern I, 620; Hill 1332

Condition:

Good. Hardcover bindings remain secure with moderate staining and wear to covers and corners. Spines show expected age wear. Interior text blocks remain legible throughout with complete pagination and all plates and maps present. Additional volume 3 included.

Why Collect This?

• First and only complete edition of Perry’s Japan Expedition
• Full suite of maps and illustrations
• Account of the voyage that contributed to the collapse of the feudal regime and the modernization of Japan

Item Number: #50636