The Natural History of British Insects. Vols 1-16
- Publisher : F. & C. Rivington
- Published In : London
- Illustrations : 576 engraved plates (569 hand coloured)
Description:
An important work, with some species named and described for the first time. Donovan originally intended the work to be complete in 10 volumes, however, several years after publication of volume 10, he decided to continue the work, and a further six volumes were published. Volumes 11-16 are rarer and complete sets are difficult to obtain. Includes 576 fine engraved plates (569 hand coloured, the remaining 7 plates are of microscopic organisms and are always uncoloured).
Vol. I includes the title-page for both the first (1792) and second (1802) issues, and includes the Dedication, Advertisement and Alphabetical Table of Contents [for Vol. I-X], which were issued following completion of Vol. X. Table of Contents for Vol. XI-XVI (final three leaves from Vol. XVI) has also been bound in Vol. I. Vols II-XVI all first issues. Half titles were issued for vols XIII-XVI, but only that for the first of each bound pair has been retained. Vol. III is bound with a half title, which is not called for (possibly one of those discarded from Vol. XIV or XVI).
Horn-Schenkling, 4949; Nissen ZBI, 1142; Lisney, 351-395.
Condition
16 vols bound in 8, 8vo (258x163mm), cont. half morocco, spines with raised bands, gilt tooling to compartments, leather title-pieces, marbled boards and endpapers; edges uncut. Some minor scuffing. Some scattered foxing, mostly to text, a few plates lightly spotted, one plate more heavily foxed; a few text leaves browned. An attractive and handsomely bound set. Armorial bookplate of Rev. W.T. Bree, Allesley Rectory. W.T. Bree (1786-1863) was rector of Allesley, Warwickshire, for 40 years. He was a keen naturalist with an interest in botany, entomology, ornithology, etc., and contributed to natural history journals of the period. He corresponded with many leading naturalists of his day, including James Sowerby, Adrian Hardy Haworth, James Francis Stephens, Edward Newman and John Obadiah Westwood. In Westwood's British Butterflies and their Transformations (1841), Bree is cited as the source of information on habitat and distribution of many species of butterflies. Darwin also cited some of Bree's observations in his own writings on natural selection. (Mead-Briggs, (2015), 'The Butterfly Collection of the Bree Family' Dispar [Online]).