Under the overall command of James Clark Ross, one of the earlier major expeditions to the Antarctic regions focused principally on magnetic and geographical investigations – but others aboard had different priorities.
In later but period style bindings of blue morocco gilt, a rare set of the seven reports on The Zoology of the Voyage of HMS Erebus and Terror... deriving from that 1839-43 voyage made £35,000 at Sotheby’s (25/20/12.9% buyer’s premium) on November 14*.
Compiled by John Richardson and John E Grey and published in the years 1844-75, they dealt with the mammals, birds, fish and crustacea of the region and were illustrated with 202 litho plates after Grey. One of the 54 coloured plates, depicting ‘Aptenodytes Fosteri’, better known today as Emperor penguins, is shown on the facing page.