Curious and eclectic collection of essays on geography, astronomy, and recent voyage discoveries. The geographical sections are informed by the discoveries of Cook, La Pérouse and other explorers of the Pacific, and include the author's thoughts on the role of the South Seas and New Holland in a new understanding of the earth.

Curious and eclectic collection of essays on geography, astronomy, and recent voyage discoveries. The geographical sections are informed by the discoveries of Cook, La Pérouse and other explorers of the Pacific, and include the author's thoughts on the role of the South Seas and New Holland in a new understanding of the earth.

Belair blends astronomy, discoveries and other scientific observations with excerpts from Voltaire and other poets. In the preface he discusses the implications of recent voyages to the Pacific Ocean, and in discussing the extent of the world's known and unknown oceans, Belair speculates on the vast undersea mountain chains that connect the continents and polar regions with New Holland.

Pierre-Alexandre Julienne de Belair, was born in Paris in 1747 and rose to become a general during the defence of Paris against the Prussians in 1792. A gifted and resourceful engineer, Belair is chiefly remembered as the author of several books on fortifications, including Nouveaux Eléments de Fortifications of 1792.