Remarkable album documenting the travels of HMS Calliope (1837-1883), a British warship, in the first few years after her launch. The ship first sailed to Madeira and Tenerife, after which she crossed the Atlantic Ocean to visit various harbour cities in Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, and Chile. Many of the illustrations and photographs include handwritten annotations about the ship's journey, with the exact dates of when she arrived where. As such, the album was likely compiled by someone who sailed on the ship during these years, possibly a crew member.
The album contains photographs, drawings, and plates relating to the places the Calliope visited between 1838-1840. It starts with photographs of Madeira and Tenerife, like the Loo Rock in the harbour of Madeira, locals carrying a tourist down the Pico Grande, the town of Güímar in Tenerife, and an age-old Dragon Tree. As the ship's next destination was Brazil, the album contains a number of photographs and illustrations of Rio de Janeiro, as well as a drawing of a picnic at the summit of the Corcovado. The Calliope then sailed to Buenos Aires and Santa Fe, arriving in August 1838. This part of the album contains a drawing of a gaucho, and 6 beautiful photographs by Samuel Boote (1844-1921), one of the most important photographers working in Argentina in the 19th century. His work shows the interior and exterior of the St. Felicitas Church in Santa Fe, as well as daily life in this city. The ship then carried the British ambassador from Argentina to Montevideo, arriving in June 1839, before continuing to Valparaíso. The final pages of the album contain a map of Montevideo, views of Valparaíso and the mountains nearby, and a drawing of a bridge.
The plates in the album were taken from other works, such as Journal of a voyage to Brazil (1824) by Maria Graham, and A history of the Brazil (1821) by James Henderson. The photographs were taken in the 1880s, which means the album must have been compiled several decades after this particular voyage of the Calliope. However, as some of the annotations mention that a location looked different on the plate than when the Calliope arrived, the album must have been compiled by a crew member.
The Calliope sailed to China after the visit to Valparaíso to serve in the First Anglo-Chinese War (1839-1842). After, she sailed to New Zealand and primarily operated in that region until she was converted into a floating chapel in 1855, and deconstructed in 1883.
With the yellow bookseller's label of "A & N.C.S.Ld Stationery Dept. 105 Victoria St. S.W." mounted on the back pastedown. The leaves and plates are somewhat foxed, likely lacking a plate or drawing on the recto of leaf [16]. Otherwise in good condition.