Pocock, 1827, Aeropleustic Art

George Pocock. A Treatise on the Æropleustic Art, or Navigation in the Air, by means of Kites, or Buoyant Sails: with a description of the charvolant, or kite carriage. And containing numerous most amusing and interesting anecdotes connected with several extraordinary excursions both by sea and land.

A description of the charvolant, a land carriage propelled by kites. Other uses of the same kites, for military purposes, communications, surveillance, and marine purposes including propulsion of boats when surface wind is calm, and the deployment of ropes by sailors.

The readily available electronic version of the book (Internet Archive) is a copy dated 1851, with illustrations by Rose Gilbert, George Pocock's daughter? Pocock's name doesn't appear on the title page. Some front matter in the book refers to George Gilbert and A[lfred?] Pocock, relations of George Pocock's.

The 1827 version is rare but copies do exist at the Library of Congress and the University of Glasglow. The 1851 edition confusingly relates, in the author's voice, an adventure with the charvolant which occurred in 1846. ("One of the most pleasurable excursions made by the Charvolant was in the summer of 1846, when the author's family, numbering 16 persons, proposed to visit London.") Yet George Pocock Sr. is said to have died in 1843! Presumably some embellishment by the family.

An edition at least slightly different from the one on Internet Archive is available at STIC, at location TL 754 .P6 in the public space. It has a dedication page from Pocock dated May 1, 1827, from Prospect Place, Bristol.

Links

• WorldCat

Original title	Aeropleustic Art
Simple title	Aeropleustic Art, Kites, or Buoyant Sails
Authors	George Pocock
Date	1827
Countries	GB
Languages	en
Keywords	kites, sails, charvolant
Journal
Related to aircraft?	1
Page count	51
Word count
Wikidata id