Rare third, revised edition of a massive navigational directory, with exhaustive information on the Arabian Sea, the Red Sea, and the Arabian Gulf. Including detailed entries on Sharjah, Dubai, Abu Dhabi ("Abothubbee"), Bahrain and Hormuz, not only covering navigational details, but also the inhabitants, pearl fishery, geography, commerce etc.
It was compiled chiefly from recent journals of ships employed by the East India Company, by James Horsburgh (1762-1836), hydrographer and chart maker to the Company. "As hydrographer Horsburgh was primarily responsible for supervising the engraving of charts sent back to London by marine surveyors in India and ordered by the company to be published, and for examining the deposited journals of returning ships for observations which would refine the oceanic navigation charts currently in use, besides other duties of provision of information laid on him by the court" (Cook).
The book appeared in a total of eight editions between 1809 and 1864 before being superseded by Findlay's A directory for the navigation of the Indian Ocean (1869).
With an inserted manuscript note facing p. 136, vol. 1, and a short manuscript note at the foot of page 501, vol. 2. Some faint thumbing to the title-pages and rebacked, but otherwise in very good condition. Cf. Cat. NHSM, p. 73 (fifth ed.); Sabin 33047 (fifth ed.); for the author: Cook, "Horsburgh, James (1762-1836)", in: ODNB (online ed.).