This is the first full edition of the notebooks used by Darwin during his epic voyage in the Beagle. It contains transcriptions of all fifteen notebooks, which now survive as some of the most precious documents in the history of science. The notebooks record the entire range of Darwin s interests and activities during the Beagle journey, with observations on geology, zoology, botany, ecology, barometer and thermometer readings, ethnography, anthropology, archaeology and linguistics, along with maps, drawings, financial records, shopping lists, reading notes, essays and personal diary entries. Some of Darwin s critical discoveries and experiences, made famous through his own publications, are recorded in their most immediate form in the notebooks, and published here for the first time. The notebook texts are accompanied by full editorial apparatus and introductions explaining Darwin s actions at each stage, focussing on discoveries that were pivotal to convincing him that life on Earth had evolved.

This 1979 volume gathers together an account of the voyage of HMS Beagle round the world in 1831 6, taken from the letters of Darwin and Fitzroy, Darwin's diary, and the books about the voyage published by Darwin and FitzRoy in 1839. It is illustrated by the pencil drawings and watercolours made by the Beagle's official artist, Conrad Martens, but pictures made on board by other members of the crew are also included. The bulk of the illustrations were previously unpublished, as were the letters written by Captain FitzRoy and Conrad Martens. Most of the other written sources were out of print. The book tells the story of the Beagle in the words of the participants as recorded at the time, and illustrates it with a selections from the original pictorial records."