Ray Parkin, sailor, artist and author, set out in the 1970s to discover everything he could about Captain James Cook's Endeavour, one of the most famous ships in maritime history.

The result is the most painstaking study of the ship ever undertaken and a unique account of a great journey - Endeavour's voyage up the east coast of Australia in 1770.

Writing for general reader and mariner alike, Parkin sets out to re-create the experience of being on board the Endeavour. Through meticulous research he reveals how it looked, how it sailed, how it smelled and what daily life would have been like for those on board.

No aspect of ship life was too insignificant for his enquiries. How many strands of yarn were there in the ship's cable? (954.) Did the ship have a lightning conductor? (Yes.) What was the diameter of her main mast? (21 inches.)

Parkin's text is illustrated by plans and figures depicting the ship's architecture and construction, its deck plan, rigging, sails, armament, boats, cables, anchors and accommodation. To enable detailed examination these are reproduced in original size in the box accompanying this volume.

The text also contains a composite log of Endeavour's voyage. Extracts from journals kept by those on board are supplemented by an interpretive commentary and explanatory charts.

H.M. Bark Endeavour is an absorbing book- discursive, erudite, at times poetic, full of wisdom, insight and information.