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SCORESBY, Rev. William (1789-1857). An Account of the Arctic Regions, with a History and Description of the Northern Whale-Fishery. Edinburgh: Archibald Constable and Co., 1820. 8vos. Illustrated with 24 maps and plates (some folding) and 4 folding tables. 2 volumes. [iii, sic]-xx, [1]-551, [1, blank], [1]-82; [iii, sic]-viii, [1]-574 pp. Bound without half-titles. Approximately 8 ¼ x 5 ¼". Bound in near contemporary half calf over marbled boards, boards stamped in gilt; both volumes rebacked to style in later brown calf, gilt, marbled edges, hinges repaired, text toned, foxed, gutter facing p. [v] in volume II with later repair, a few gutters starting). Very good. FIRST EDITION OF "THE FOUNDATION STONE OF ARCTIC SCIENCE (DNB)." This monumental account covers nearly 30 years of Scoresby's journeys to the Arctic and the whaling grounds there. He was the first to observe the annual break-up of the Arctic ice, and he theorized that the Northwest Passage may appear in the warmer months near the southern Canadian ice. He came within 500 miles of the North Pole, the closest anyone came to the North Pole until 1827. Arctic Bibliography 15610. Sabin 78167.