Art Directory - the information medium for art and culture
deutsch

James Cook

Marton 1728 - Hawaii 1779


James Cook was born in Marton (Yorkshire) in 1728. He grew up as the son of a day laborer, received his education in a school and, at 17, became an assistant in a general store. At 18, Cook hired on board coal-carrying ships between Newcastle upon Tyne and London. In 1755, Cook moved over to the Royal Navy, where he qualified for ship’s master (helmsman) in only four years through intense self-study. During the years 1756-67, Cook mapped the North Atlantic coastal waters along Newfoundland, the Saint Lawrence Seaway and other parts of the eastern coast of Canada on extended sea voyages.
In 1768-71, Cook traveled from Cape Horn via Tahiti and New Zealand all the way to Australia. He mapped the coasts which to that point were uncharted, discovered that New Zealand is a double island, and was the first European to reach the Australian continent. On board with him were a botanist and several British astronomers who were interested in the course of Venus over Tahiti and hoped to gain information from their observations to help calculate the distance from the earth to the sun.
Cook made another voyage of discovery in 1772-75 to look for a supposed gigantic South Continent, the "Terra Australis". James Cook sailed to the Hervey Islands (later called the Cook Islands), the New Hebrides, the Marquesas Islands, and the Easter Islands; he discovered New Caledonia, the southern Sandwich Islands and the south Georgian Island group. He advanced as far as 71 degrees South latitude. With his voyage, Cook proved that the continent "Terra Australis", as it had been imagined, did not exist.
Once back in England, James Cook enjoyed high social standing. He became a member of the Royal Society. He was awarded the Copley Medal for his scientific achievements.
In 1776, James Cook started off on a third great voyage of discovery. His goal was to find a northwest passage between the Atlantic and the Pacific. Cook was unsuccessful, but he discovered and charted several islands, among them Hawaii and Kiribati, traveled Alaska’s coast and explored the Bering Strait. Forced to go back because of the pack ice, James Cook landed in Hawaii in January, 1779. A violation of a tabu by his crew created conflicts with the indigenous people, which Cook paid for with his life. His crew returned to England in 1780.


James Cook - Voyage towards the south pole. 2 Bände
James Cook
Voyage towards the south pole. 2 Bände
4,440 $
Details
Abraham Ortelius - Theatrum orbis terrarum
Abraham Ortelius
Theatrum orbis terrarum
55,500 $
Details
No image
available
Georg Wilhelm Steller
Reise von Kamtschatka nach Amerika. Vorgebunden: Beschreibung von Kamtschatka
11,100 $
Details
No image
available
Nicolas Sanson d'Abbeville
Description de tout l'univers
6,660 $
Details
No image
available
Proclus Diadochus
De sphaera liber I ... una cum J. Honteri De cosmographiae rudimentis.
5,550 $
Details
Bernard Randolph - Present State of Morea - The present state of the Islands. 2 Teile in 1 Band.
Bernard Randolph
Present State of Morea - The present state of the Islands. 2 Teile in 1 Band.
2,220 $
Details
Jean de Léry - Historia in navigationis in Brasiliam
Jean de Léry
Historia in navigationis in Brasiliam
2,220 $
Details
H. J. Breuning von und zu Buchenbach - Orientalische Reyß
H. J. Breuning von und zu Buchenbach
Orientalische Reyß
1,998 $
Details

Advertisement
Auction Spotter Logo
The most important art auctions from all over the world at a glance!

Discover it for free
Advertisement
Fine Art Auction
show
&
bid!
view

Johanna Schütz-Wolff
Johanna Schütz-Wolff
Starting bid: 5,000 EUR

Privacy Policy Contact