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DARWIN, Charles (1809-1882). On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection. London: W. Clowes and Sons for John Murray, 1859. -

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DARWIN, Charles (1809-1882). On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection. London: W. Clowes and Sons for John Murray, 1859.
Price Realized
(Set Currency)
  • £103,250
  • ($170,569)
  • Price includes buyer's premium
Estimate
    £40,000 - £60,000
  • ($66,280 - $99,420)

Sale Information

Sale 7760
Valuable Manuscripts and Printed Books
24 November 2009
London, King Street





Lot Description

DARWIN, Charles (1809-1882). On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection. London: W. Clowes and Sons for John Murray, 1859.

8° in 12s (200 x 124mm). Folding lithographed diagram. Publisher's ads at end dated June 1859. (Stub to inserted leaf b visible, half title delicate at hinge, a couple of leaves towards end with a few light creases at fore-edge.) Original publisher's blindstamped green cloth, spine gilt-decorated, Freeman binding variant b, no priority established (20mm tear to upper joint at headcap, corners lightly bumped, front hinge very slightly cracked).

FIRST EDITION, A FRESH COPY OF 'THE MOST INFLUENTIAL SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURY' (Grolier Science). In this revolutionary statement of his concept of the evolution of species 'Darwin not only drew an entirely new picture of the workings of organic nature; he revolutionized our methods of thinking and our outlook on the natural order of things. The recognition that constant change is the order of the universe had been finally established and a vast step forward in the uniformity of nature had been taken' (PMM). Dibner Heralds 199; Freeman 373; Garrison-Morton 220; Grolier Science 23b; Norman 593; PMM344b.

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