JENNER, Edward (1749-1823). An Inquiry into the Causes and Effects of the Variolae Vaccinae, a disease discovered in some of the western counties of England, particularly Gloucestershire, and known by the name of the cow pox, London: printed for the author by Sampson Low, sold by Law and Murray & Highley, 1798, 4°, FIRST EDITION, 4 engraved plates by William Skelton, plate 1 after Skelton, plates 2-4 after Edward Pearce, the plates printed in sanguine and enhanced with hand-colouring (the plates cropped at lower margin with loss of the artist's name on plates 1 and 2 and partial loss of the name on plate 4, plate 4 with very small nick at outer margin, 3 plates with light crease mark in upper right hand corner, F3 detached, slightly torn at inner margin and with very small nicks in outer margin, K1 misbound after K3), original green boards (rebacked, soiled and rubbed at extremities), modern slipcase. [Dibner Heralds 127; GM 4523; Grolier Medicine 53; Grolier Science 56; LeFanu 23 [20]; Lilly p. 151; Norman 1162; Osler 1251; PMM 250; Waller 5136; Wellcome III, p. 351]

Details

JENNER, Edward (1749-1823). An Inquiry into the Causes and Effects of the Variolae Vaccinae, a disease discovered in some of the western counties of England, particularly Gloucestershire, and known by the name of the cow pox, London: printed for the author by Sampson Low, sold by Law and Murray & Highley, 1798, 4°, FIRST EDITION, 4 engraved plates by William Skelton, plate 1 after Skelton, plates 2-4 after Edward Pearce, the plates printed in sanguine and enhanced with hand-colouring (the plates cropped at lower margin with loss of the artist's name on plates 1 and 2 and partial loss of the name on plate 4, plate 4 with very small nick at outer margin, 3 plates with light crease mark in upper right hand corner, F3 detached, slightly torn at inner margin and with very small nicks in outer margin, K1 misbound after K3), original green boards (rebacked, soiled and rubbed at extremities), modern slipcase. [Dibner Heralds 127; GM 4523; Grolier Medicine 53; Grolier Science 56; LeFanu 23 [20]; Lilly p. 151; Norman 1162; Osler 1251; PMM 250; Waller 5136; Wellcome III, p. 351]

Lot Essay

"Jenner established the fact that a 'vaccination' or inoculation with vaccinia (cowpox) lymph matter protects against smallpox. He performed his first vaccination on May 14, 1796. The above work, describing 23 successful vaccinations, announced to the world one of the greatest triumphs in the history of medicine. Jennerian vaccination soon superseded the protective inoculation of material from human cases of smallpox, which had previously been in vogue. What is probably the first mention of anaphylaxis appears on p. 13 of the pamphlet ... As a result of the success of Jenner's vaccine natural smallpox was eradicated. The official declaration was made by the World Health Organisation on May 8, 1980" [GM]
The term "vaccination" as the new process was called derived from the Latin, "vacca" (cow), while Jenner himself introduced the term "virus" (slime or poison) into English to refer to the material that produced cowpox. His slim quarto book was published at his own expense, the coloured engravings illustrating the mild pustules produced by the cowpox infection.

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