Klubbat för:

24000 SEK

Utropspris

18 000-20 000 SEK

Beskrivning

FINE WORK ON CRUSTACEA ILLUSTRATED BY SOWERBY. LEACH, WILLIAM ELFORD. Malacostraca podophthalmata Britanniae, or descriptions of the Linnean genus Cancer. London (B. Meredith, published and sold by James Sowerby), 1815-20, 1875.

Large 4to (c. 300x240 mm.). (122, 4) pp. Complete with 54 hand-coloured plates throughout (4 of which are fold-out, 1 double-page) hand-coloured engraved plates by James Sowerby (only slight foxing and some offsetting). With the original blue paper wrappers of the 19 part issues bound at the rear.
Contemporary green half calf with marbled paper on covers, very worn and rubbed, covers detached and with title and two leaves attached to upper cover, gilt spine damaged with loose parts, endpapers and title, gilt upper edge. Text with some slight foxing and spotting, some folds in the beginning. Bookplate of N. Woodward.

Nissen ZBI 2424.
One of the finest works on Crustacea ever published with excellent engravings.
The work was published in 19 parts, the first 17 parts between 1815-20, the concluding double issue with 7 more plates by the British naturalist, illustrator and conchologist George Brettingham Sowerby (a grandson of James Sowerby) in 1875 was published by antiquarian bookseller Bernard Quaritch, who had bought the remaining stock of the foregoing issues (Title: Malacostraca Podopthalmata Britanniae . continued and completed, with a new generic and specific index to the whole, and seven new plates. London, Bernard Quaritch, 1875). The work is dedicated to Sir Joseph Banks.
Complete copies are very rare on the market, as is often the matter with works published in part issues over such a long period.
In the copy offered, the later part is intercalated with the earlier ones.
According to Chievely, vol.7, p.361, Journal of the Society for Bibliography of Natural History, 30 copies of a large paper copy were issued, and only 250 of the small paper version.

William Elford Leach (1790-1836), English zoologist and marine biologist and assistant keeper of the Zoological Department at the British Museum.

Provenance: The consigners´ family is related to James Sowerby (1757-1822) through their great grandmother, who was the daughter Charlotte Ann Sowerby (Lottie), later married Bryant. The family´s grandmother later bought this work in London in the 1920´s.

Auktionsnummer:

6180

Datum:

2019-06-14