The naturalist and traveller Thomas Pennant (several of whose other works are reissued in the Cambridge Library Collection) published this account of a journey through Scotland and its islands in 1774. Pennant (1726 98) had already written one account of Scotland, in 1771. (He later claimed that by 'shewing that it might be visited with safety' he had created a tourist boom.) His great enthusiasm was for the Hebrides, and more than half of the book describes his voyage around the islands, though he was frustrated by bad weather in getting to Staffa. He transcribes instead an account by Sir Joseph Banks, who had visited in the same year, and in his preface he acknowledges the researches and notes on particular places which had been provided by friends and correspondents. This is a genial account of the history, environment and people of a region still exotic to many Britons."

On 14 December 1911, Roald Amundsen (1872 1928) and his Norwegian team became the first humans to reach the South Pole, a month before their ill-fated British rivals under the leadership of Robert Falcon Scott. Reissued here is the 1912 English translation of Amundsen's two-volume account of how this extraordinary and perilous feat was achieved. Illustrated throughout with illuminating maps and photographs, the text contains important details relating to matters of climate, equipment, diet, sledging and survival in forbiddingly cold conditions over uncertain terrain. Underpinning Amundsen's success, the use of dogs, skis and fur clothing made possible the dash to the pole and back without the loss of human life. While careful to present the expedition in the best light, Amundsen's work remains essential reading in the history of Antarctic exploration. Volume 1 covers the early stages of the expedition prior to the start for the pole in October 1911."

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 fine engravings and maps, also includes appendices presenting Hall's detailed scientific observations and notes of his conversations with the Inuit, which disclosed evidence of cannibalism among Franklin's crew. Based on his earlier expedition, Hall's Life with the Esquimaux (1864) is also reissued in this series."

From an early age Roald Amundsen (1872 1928) was determined to be an explorer. Having gained valuable experience on the Belgian Antarctic Expedition (1897 9), he resolved to conquer the North-West Passage. After three years, using a small fishing vessel, the Gjoa, and only six crew, Amundsen succeeded in reaching Nome, Alaska. First published in Norwegian in 1907, and reissued here in its 1908 English translation, this two-volume account is copiously illustrated with photographs. Volume 1 describes how the ship was chosen and its departure from Norway in June 1903. The men spent two winters on King William Island, learning much about survival from the local Inuit. The observatory they established collected magnetic data for almost two years as well as meteorological data, both of which added greatly to existing Arctic knowledge. Sledge journeys ascertained that the position of the North Magnetic Pole had changed little for more than seventy years."

From an early age Roald Amundsen (1872 1928) was determined to be an explorer. Having gained valuable experience on the Belgian Antarctic Expedition (1897 9), he resolved to conquer the North-West Passage. After three years, using a small fishing vessel, the Gjoa, and only six crew, Amundsen succeeded in reaching Nome, Alaska. First published in Norwegian in 1907, and reissued here in its 1908 English translation, this two-volume account is copiously illustrated with photographs. Volume 2 begins with details of Inuit practices, including the building of snow houses, fishing, and the making of clothes. The navigation to Herschel Island, where the men spent a third winter among whaling vessels, is then recounted. One of the crew died from illness before the Gjoa reached Nome in August 1906. This volume contains a lengthy supplement by Godfred Hansen, describing the sledge journeys to map the coast of Victoria Island, and a detailed index to both volumes."

Prince Luigi Amedeo of Savoy, a grandson of King Vittorio Emanuele II of Italy, was well known as a mountaineer and traveller when, in 1899, he organised an expedition to the Arctic, obtaining a steam whaling ship in Oslo which he renamed the Stella Polare. His ambition was to reach the highest possible latitude (and possibly the North Pole itself) by careful logistical arrangements, wintering on the ice in Franz Josef Land and using dog-sledges to travel further north. He also intended a scientific survey of the area in which the team passed the winter. His account of the expedition was published in Italian in 1902 and this two-volume English translation by William Le Queux (better known as the author of sensationalist spy and crime novels) appeared in 1903. Volume 1 recounts the genesis and progress of the expedition, including the crew's efforts to free the ice-bound ship using explosives.

Prince Luigi Amedeo of Savoy, a grandson of King Vittorio Emanuele II of Italy, was well known as a mountaineer and traveller when, in 1899, he organised an expedition to the Arctic, obtaining a steam whaling ship in Oslo which he renamed the Stella Polare. His ambition was to reach the highest possible latitude (and possibly the North Pole itself) by careful logistical arrangements, wintering on the ice in Franz Josef Land and using dog-sledges to travel further north. He also intended a scientific survey of the area in which the team passed the winter. His account of the expedition was published in Italian in 1902 and this two-volume English translation by William Le Queux (better known as the author of sensationalist spy and crime novels) appeared in 1903. Volume 2 gives detailed accounts of the two sledge journeys undertaken by Commander Cagni and Dr Cavalli Molinelli.

This 1850 account of the history of Arctic exploration was dedicated to Lady Franklin, whose energy in spurring on expeditions in search of her husband and his two ships, by then missing for five years, was widely admired. John Shillinglaw (d.1862), a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, was able both to give a historical perspective and to describe the most recent efforts being made to discover Franklin's fate. The narrative begins with the Viking exploration and settlement of Iceland and Greenland, and possible landings in North America. While focusing on British voyages in more recent history, Shillinglaw also includes Russian and Danish activities, as well as the founding of trading firms like the Hudson's Bay Company. But the greater part of the book describes, in considerable detail, voyages from the late eighteenth century up to 1850, and offers a useful synthesis of the first-hand accounts published in this period.

The German scientific writer Georg Hartwig (1813 80) produced many popular works on geographical and natural history topics, among them this book, published in English in 1869. (An American version, with additional chapters, came out in the same year.) Unusually for the period, it surveyed exploration in the Antarctic as well as the Arctic, though the coverage of the latter makes up the bulk of the book. Hartwig's intention is 'to convey solid instruction under an entertaining form', combining the history of exploration with descriptions of the polar regions explored by the mid-century, including Siberia as well as the islands and ice packs of the Arctic Ocean. In this very readable work, Hartwig describes geography, geology and climate, as well as the survival strategies of plant, animal and human life in an extreme environment, using a very wide range of earlier published material to create an integrated narrative."

In 1871 the British government agreed to support an expedition to collect physical and chemical data and biological specimens from the world's oceans. Led by Charles Wyville Thomson (1830 82), the expedition used HMS Challenger, refitted with laboratories. They sailed nearly 70,000 nautical miles around the world, took soundings and water samples at hundreds of stops along the way, and discovered more than 4,000 new marine species. Noted for the discovery of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and the Pacific's deepest trench, the expedition laid the foundations for modern oceanography. This acclaimed two-volume account, first published in 1877, summarises the major discoveries for the Atlantic legs of this pioneering voyage. Illustrated with plates and woodcuts, Volume 1 describes the laboratories and equipment, the observations from Portsmouth via Tenerife to the Caribbean, and the detailed studies on the Gulf Stream."

In 1871 the British government agreed to support an expedition to collect physical and chemical data and biological specimens from the world's oceans. Led by Charles Wyville Thomson (1830 82), the expedition used HMS Challenger, refitted with laboratories. They sailed nearly 70,000 nautical miles around the world, took soundings and water samples at hundreds of stops along the way, and discovered more than 4,000 new marine species. Noted for the discovery of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and the Pacific's deepest trench, the expedition laid the foundations for modern oceanography. This acclaimed two-volume account, first published in 1877, summarises the major discoveries for the Atlantic legs of this pioneering voyage. Illustrated with plates and woodcuts, Volume 2 describes the voyage from the Caribbean via Madeira to the coast of Brazil, then to South Africa. The voyage home in 1876 from the Strait of Magellan is also covered. A final chapter summarises the principal conclusions."

An eminent geographer, Clements Markham (1830 1916) had searched for Sir John Franklin in the Arctic as a young man in the Royal Navy. This stimulated his lifelong passion for the polar regions. Published in 1873, this historical review of Arctic exploration was based on extensive research at the Royal Geographical Society, of which Markham was then secretary and later president. The chapters include coverage of early explorers from the sixteenth century, the voyages of Barents and Hudson, Dutch and English whaling voyages around Spitsbergen, exploration of Greenland's east coast, expeditions into Baffin Bay and Smith Sound, Russian discoveries, and possibilities for scientific progress. A discussion of the best route for future British exploration is provided, with an appendix setting out the case for the expedition of 1875 6. Illustrated with a number of maps, Markham's book keenly sought to stimulate further polar exploration by his countrymen."

Alexander Fisher (d.1838), ship's surgeon on the Arctic exploration ship H.M.S. Hecla, was the probable author of the anonymous 1819 Journal of a Voyage of Discovery to the Arctic Regions, also reissued in this series. The voyage of the Hecla and Griper began in 1819, and Fisher's account was published in 1821, going rapidly into further editions (of which this reissue is the third). The intention of the expedition, under William Edward Parry, was to find the North-West Passage. It was unsuccessful in this respect (an account by Captain G. F. Lyon of Parry's expedition of 1821-3 is also available in this series), but Fisher's detailed and lively account claims that the existence of the passage has been so far proved that it cannot be doubted. He describes the people and wildlife seen during the voyage, as well as providing technical details of latitude, weather and currents.

When John Brown (1797 1861) developed a defect in his eyesight, he could no longer embark on extended voyages for the East India Company. After making a fortune selling gold and diamonds, he cultivated his geographical interests, and was elected to the Royal Geographical Society in 1837. Brown was especially interested in the Arctic, and he became concerned about the missing Franklin expedition to find the North-West Passage. In this substantial work, first published in 1858 and reissued here in one volume with its 1860 sequel, Brown provides a detailed account of previous polar expeditions before turning to the efforts to find Franklin and his men. The sequel is devoted to the 1857 9 search expedition arranged by Lady Franklin and led by Leopold McClintock. A number of other works on Franklin's last expedition and the subsequent searches have also been reissued in this series."

The Peutinger Map is the only map of the Roman world to come down to us from antiquity. Today it is among the treasures of the Austrian National Library in Vienna. Richard Talbert's study presented in Rome's World: The Peutinger Map Reconsidered offers a long-overdue reinterpretation and appreciation of the map as a masterpiece of both mapmaking and imperial Roman ideology. Here, the ancient world's traditional span, from the Atlantic to India, is dramatically remolded; lands and routes take pride of place, whereas seas are compressed. Talbert posits that the map's true purpose was not to assist travelers along Rome's highways, but rather to celebrate the restoration of peace and order by Diocletian's Tetrarchy. Such creative cartography, he shows, influenced the development of medieval mapmaking. With the aid of digital technology, this book enables readers to engage with the Peutinger Map in all of its fascinating immensity more closely than ever before.

The French geologist Barthelemy Faujas de Saint-Fond (1741 1819) abandoned the legal profession to pursue studies in natural history, working at the museum of natural history in Paris and as royal commissioner of mines. His enthusiasm for geology took him in 1784 to Britain, to investigate the basalt formations on the Hebridean island of Staffa described by Sir Joseph Banks in Pennant's Tour in Scotland (also reissued in this series). His subsequent account was published in France in 1797, and first translated into English in an abridged form in 1814. This two-volume annotated translation by the well-known geologist Sir Archibald Geikie (1835 1924), prefaced by a short biography of Faujas, was published in 1907. The work is interesting for its social as well as its geological observations. Volume 1 describes life in scientific circles in London, before recounting Faujas' journey to the Highlands of Scotland via Edinburgh and Glasgow."

The French geologist Barthelemy Faujas de Saint-Fond (1741 1819) abandoned the legal profession to pursue studies in natural history, working at the museum of natural history in Paris and as royal commissioner of mines. His enthusiasm for geology took him in 1784 to Britain, to investigate the basalt formations on the Hebridean island of Staffa described by Sir Joseph Banks in Pennant's Tour in Scotland (also reissued in this series). His subsequent account was published in France in 1797, and first translated into English in an abridged form in 1814. This two-volume annotated translation by the well-known geologist Sir Archibald Geikie (1835 1924), prefaced by a short biography of Faujas, was published in 1907. The work is interesting for its social as well as its geological observations. Volume 2 describes the geology and natural history of the Hebrides. On his return journey, Faujas also visits the geological marvels of Derbyshire."

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 Zealand, the Falkland Islands and Tierra del Fuego. During three attempts to reach the South Pole the expedition explored the Ross Sea, described the ice barrier, and raised the British flag to claim possession. The volume ends with the abortive attempt in 1827 to reach the North Pole via Spitsbergen."

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 appendices provide notes on maintaining health in polar climes. This is followed by McCormick's autobiography, tracing his struggles to gain promotion in his naval career. Copies of correspondence relating to the Franklin search reveal his battle to have his ideas accepted by the Admiralty."

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 widely in his narrative, commenting on the Icelandic fondness for dogs, historical and contemporary friction with Denmark, and the island's economic fortunes. His perceptive account was first published in Swedish in 1866 and is reissued here in the English translation that appeared in 1868."

The disappearance of Sir John Franklin's Arctic expedition of 1845 led to many rescue attempts, some by the British government, and some by private individuals. This short 1860 account of Franklin's life and of the search for him was written by the experienced naval officer Sherard Osborn (several of whose other works have been reissued in this series) with a view to inspiring the youth of Britain to follow the great explorer's example of duty and rectitude. Osborn (1822 75) had begun his naval career in the Far East, but was a pioneering commander of steam-powered ships, and his performance in the steam tender HMS Pioneer in the 1850 rescue expedition confirmed the efficiency of this new technology in icy waters. Decorated for his role in the Crimean War, and later active in railway and telegraph technology, he continued to take an interest in Arctic exploration, and in steamships, until his death."

In this 1895 survey of the life and works of James Rennell (1742 1830), the geographer and historian Clements R. Markham (1830 1916) describes him as 'the greatest geographer that Great Britain has yet produced'. The book was published in the 'Century Science Series', which narrated the lives and works of exemplars in each area of science, and Markham goes on to explain why Rennell should be the chosen representative of geography. 'He was an explorer both by sea and land, a map compiler, a physical geographer, a critical and comparative geographer, and a hydrographer.' Rennell is probably best remembered for the surveys of western Asia (also reissued in this series) in which he attempted to match modern to classical sites, but his professional career was spent as an army surveyor in India and Africa. Markham's account of Rennell's life concludes with an examination of his geographical legacy."

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 information to English readers. The rest of the journal brims with evocative anecdotes from the journey - a polar bear sighting, a thunderstorm on an ice-ridden sea, a meeting with a renowned Native American chieftain. The appendices provide such additional information as navigational data, details of Inuit dress, and a short vocabulary of the Cree language.