Marine - Whaling - Lot 67

Marine - Whaling CLEIRAC (Estienne) Uses and customs of the sea. Divided into three parts. I. De la navigation. II. Du commerce naval, & contrats maritimes. III. De la juridiction de la Marine. Avec un traité des termes de marine, règlemens de la navigation des fleuves & rivières ; et les nouveaux édits, règlemens, arrests & jugemens rendus sur le fait du commerce de la mer. Rouen, Lucas, 1671. In-4: 4f., 581pp. - 87pp., (2). Scattered spotting, more or less strong in places. Brown pastiche marbled calf, ornate ribbed spine, red title-piece, triple gilt fillet framing the boards, fleurons in spandrels, filleted edges, red edges. The work deals with ancient maritime laws, and also contains a passage on whaling. In two curious chapters devoted to his Basque compatriots (Expédition ou Voyage des Basques dans la mer de Groetland, and Première découverte de l'Amérique par les Basques), the author asserts that the Basques discovered Newfoundland and Canada a hundred years before Columbus, and that it was a Newfoundland pilot who revealed their existence to him. Not in Vinson.