1-156-285 - Oxford Science Archive/Heritage Images

Neptune raising James Cook to immortality and fame, late 18th century. The name of Captain Cook (1728-1779), English navigator, explorer and hydrographer, is being written in the book of history. In the foreground, inhabitants of America, Africa and Asia pay homage to Britannia. Cook made three voyages of discovery. On the first he observed the transit of Venus and charted the coasts of New Zealand and eastern Australia, claiming them for Britain, and on the second he explored the Southern Ocean. The main objective of his last voyage was to find a northern sea passage between the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. He was killed when a fight broke out with natives in Hawaii.