Home / Browse / Travel & Exploration / Through the Dark Continent.
STANLEY, Henry Morton.
Through the Dark Continent.
or the sources of the Nile around the great lakes of Equatorial Africa and down the Livingstone River to the Atlantic Ocean.
Publisher: London: Sampson Low, Marston, Searle & Rivington, 1878
Stock code: 60698
Price: £750 Currency Conversion
First edition. Account of Stanley's controversial Trans-African Expedition of 1874-7. Stanley finally dispelled Livingstone's notion that the "Lualaba was the source of the Nile and vindicated Speke's claim that the lake seen on his expedition with Burton was indeed one of the sources." (Howgego) However, acclaim for his success in "solving the remaining mysteries of African geography" (ODNB) was tempered by criticism that his manner of of carrying through the expedition amounted to "exploration by warfare."
2 volumes, octavo (213 × 132 mm) Contemporary tree calf, red and black morocco labels, spines gilt in compartments, gilt panels to the boards, edges and endpapers marbled, inner blind dentelles. Tinted lithographic portrait frontispiece in each volume and 32 plates, numerous wood-engravings to the text, many full-page, 10 maps in all, the 2 large folding coloured maps now linen-mounted, 2 other smaller folding maps. Slightly rubbed at the extremities, head-cap of Volume I a little chipped, lower joint just starting head and tail, some loss at the corners of Volume II, but a pretty set.
