First edition and internally a fine, untrimmed copy of this general treatise on perspective by the astronomer and mathematician Eustachio Zanotti. "Eustachio Zanotti's treatise, as would be expected from a scientist of his quality, provides an analytical treatment of the mathematics of perspective at a highly professional level... He..... More
Very rare first and sole edition of the first treatise published by the pioneering French mineralogist Jean-Baptiste Romé de L’Isle (1736-1780), and his sole work on marine biology, concerning the “movement, generation and nature” of the freshwater polyp. In the present work Romé hypothesizes, drawing on observations by the naturalist..... More
Rare, second edition and a mint copy of this popular Italian illustrated obstetrics guide. Containing plates of anatomical diagrams, illustrations of tools including several types of forceps, and somewhat atypically in our experience, a depiction of a lying-in bed without the mother to make viewing of a 'system' of blankets..... More
First and only edition of a landmark book on bridge engineering, important not only for its bold solution for a complex site but also for many novel machines used in the course of construction. "Since its appearance the present work has been recognized for its great utility to engineers charged..... More
Extremely rare first edition of an instruction manual for a new nautical instrument that determines “l’angolo di deriva,” i.e. a ship’s drift angle (a result of yaw). At times Micheli’s tract also recounts the public success of his previous inventions: in 1774 he was commissioned by the Grand Duchy of..... More
First edition of this extremely scarce and important book which contains the announcement of Scheele’s discovery of oxygen, made independently of, and two years prior to, Priestley. Scheele’s monumental discovery was made by 1773; he had begun his experiments on oxygen in 1770. The publication of this book was delayed..... More
First edition of, according to Lalande, the best book of the period on trigonometry and its application to astronomy. The work was actually a handbook covering all aspects of the field for the practicing astronomer and contains for the first time the trigonometric formula which now bears Cagnoli's name. In..... More
First edition of this lavishly illustrated mining classic describing an amalgamation process for removing gold and silver from various ores. As the process did not require the usual smelting of the ore, it saved an enormous quantity of fuel and was widely adapted throughout the Habsburg Empire and elsewhere in..... More
First edition of this comprehensive account of the American War of Independence, as seen from the French perspective. According to Howes, Leboucher’s account is the “best French chronicle of the American Revolution, [and] particularly valuable on naval affairs”; it includes lists of French battle casualties, vessels captured or destroyed, and..... More
First edition and fine copy of this work on plant classification which eclipsed all previous taxonomies, and whose general arrangement of families remains current today. Jussieu’s taxonomy was based on the species contained in the Jardin du Roi, supplemented by material provided by some of the great 18th-century Pacific discovery..... More
Extremely rare 18th-century pamphlet listing and describing 13 machines recently invented by Carlo Castelli (active 1780-1810s), emeritus professor of physics, member of several learned scientific academies, and Provost of the Collegiata della Sta. Maria Fulcorina in Milan. The 4-page prospectus notes that these inventions are available for order from the..... More
Rare first edition of this handsomely illustrated treatise on the cultivation and manufacture of linen, a staple of the textile and paper industries until the invention of the cotton gin by Eli Whitney (a mere two years after this book was published) and cheaper methods of paper processing curtailed its..... More
Robert Kerr (1755-1813) made the first English translation of Lavoisier?s Traité elementaire de Chimie (Paris, 1789). Printing & the Mind of Man headlines the original edition as "A new epoch in chemistry." A more recent analysis pinpoints the importance of this book: "Lavoisier's most fundamental innovations transformed how one presents..... More
First edition of a landmark publication in the history of chemistry, Fourcroy’s 10-volume encyclopedic treatise of chemical theory and application. The treatise draws on twenty years of research conducted by Fourcroy, from his private lectures in the early 1780s to his most recent investigations into mercury oxides and salts, carried..... More
Extremely rare first edition of a medical case study on a severe case of osteomalacia, or bone softening, in the skull, thorax and pelvis of a young woman. The report briefly outlines the history of the case and the acquisition of the cadaver before launching into a highly detailed, technical..... More
Extraordinary folio album of 28 fine full-page and double-page drawings executed by the student Charles-Gilbert Gilberton (b. 1788- d. after 1853) at the Paris École impériale polytechnique during the academic years 1809-10. The portfolio provides a valuable visual record of how young engineers and architects were trained in the graphic..... More
First edition. Published during the War of 1812, an early American pamphlet describing two methods for supplying a diver with air. The author envisions a naval force of three to four hundred men duly supplied with air, at depths of 3-7 soundings, capable of making a formidable surprise attack in..... More
An attractive early 19th-century manuscript of anatomical drawings of the human (male) body, many with muscles keyed and labeled in a minute German script. The notebook is attributed by a German pencil annotation inside its upper cover to the Austrian painter Adam Brenner (1800-1891), who studied principally with Leopold Kupelwieser..... More
First edition of an historically important volume describing the Dendera Affair, the Egyptian archaeological expedition of 1820 led by Saulnier, an antiquarian and treasure-hunter, and J.-B. Lelorrain, the master mason he hired to remove the bas-relief zodiac from Egypt’s Temple of Dendera and smuggle it to Paris. Until it was..... More
First published London, 1820, this is the second enlarged edition of Barlow's shipboard study of magnetism. In 1819 Barlow became interested in the compass deviation caused by the iron in ships. He therefore investigated the action of terrestrial magnetism and conducted a series of experiments on the interaction of..... More
Rare first and only edition – illustrated with 2 large folding lithographs – of an ambitious early 19th-century project proposal for improving the navigability of the Seine between Paris and the port of Le Havre. Jacques-Joseph Frimot (1790-1866), hydraulic engineer of the Corps Royal des Ponts et Chaussées, here confronts..... More
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Extremely rare illustrated brochure announcing the introduction of mass public transport to Paris, the second city to adopt the ‘omnibus’ after its invention in Nantes by Stanislas Baudry in 1826. As the present work makes it clear, however, the original purpose of such carriages was hardly to transport workers to..... More
Scarce first printing of this elaborately produced facsimile of a 14th-century manuscript containing Philip the Fair's legislation concerning wagers of battle, the chivalric custom of settling disputes by force of arms rather than by the rule of law. This legislation, along with the ordinances of Louis IX against dueling (which..... More
First edition of a pivotal book in organic chemistry and the most important and original scientific work of a self-taught, somewhat belligerent scientist-politician (1794-1878). "Raspail held a prominent place in the development of science in the 19th century. In organic chemistry he specified the properties of numerous substances... Raspail belonged..... More
Extensive sammelband of 17 early 19th-century Italian agricultural treatises relating to exotic crops, pest control, farm storage, seed scattering, etc. Cotton, peanuts, potatoes, wheat, swedes (a root vegetable popular in England), clover, apples, and other crops are discussed, as is an American decorative annual, Madia sativa, which appears to have..... More