Basel: Hieronymus Froben, 1546. An exceptionally fine copy, completely untouched in its original binding, of ‘the first handbook of modern systematic mineralogy’ (Grolier/Horblit 2a). “Georgius Agricola (latinized from the German ‘Georg Bauer’) became interested in the theoretical and practical aspects of mining, metallurgy and geology after being appointed town doctor..... More
Item #4140

Stockholm: P.A. Norstedt, 1884. The rare offprint issue of Arrhenius’s landmark discovery of the theory of electrolytic disassociation. Arrhenius was awarded the 1903 Nobel Prize in chemistry “in recognition of the extraordinary services he has rendered to the advancement of chemistry by his electrolytic theory of dissociation.” By 1880, “it..... More
Item #3160

Lyon: Macé Bonhomme, 1557. First edition of this extremely rare collection, which includes the first French translation and second appearance overall of the famous ‘Mirror of Alchemy’ of the ‘Doctor Mirabilis’ Roger Bacon; the first English translation was published in 1597. The works L’elixir des philosophes and L’art transmutatoire are..... More
Item #4984

Copenhagen: Peter Haubold, 1673-1680. Rare complete run of one of the first medical journals. While Garrison lists 3 previous journals, 2 of these were published for 1 issue only (‘Medical and scientific periodicals of the 17th and 18th centuries,’ in Bull. Inst. Hist. Med., Johns Hopkins II, 285-243). Only the..... More
Item #4134

[Boston: David Clapp, December 1846]. First separate edition, very rare, of “the first published announcement of the discovery of surgical anesthesia, the most significant contribution to medicine made in the United Sates during the nineteenth century. In the summer of 1846, W. T. G. Morton, a Boston dentist, began investigating..... More
Item #4503

Utrecht: Joh. Altheer, 1828. First edition, extremely rare, of Bleuland’s last work, the beautiful catalogue of the author’s collection of more than 2000 anatomical and pathological preparations. “Jan Bleuland (1756-1838) taught anatomy, physiology and obstetrics to medical students, and to surgical apprentices and midwives surgery and obstetrics using the vernacular..... More
Item #3917

Copenhagen: Sumptibus Petri Hauboldi, Reg. Acad. Bibl. 1674. First edition, and “one of the few copies having the folding plate illustrating three types of retorts, as well as the four-page dedication to Jean Baptiste Colbert. According to the Wellcome Library catalogue, ‘this plate is a copy from a MS. Of..... More
Item #3252

Oxford: Henry Hall for R. Davis and B. Took, 1680. Second edition in English (first, 1661), complete with the very rare advertisement leaf which is lacking from most copies, of this landmark in the history of science, “his most important work [where he] set down his corpuscular theory of the..... More
Item #4552

Florence: Luigi Carlieri, 1793-1794. First edition of perhaps the greatest rarity in the history of psychiatric literature. Based on his practical experience at the hospital of S. Bonifazio in Florence, in Della pazzia Chiarugi (1759-1820) discussed the causes and treatment of insanity. Chiarugi’s work and the reforms he instituted at..... More
Item #4906

Manchester: S. Russell for R. Bickerstaff; Russell & Allen for R. Bickerstaff; Executives of S. Russell for G. Wilson, 1808-1810-1827. First edition of Dalton’s classic work on the atomic theory of matter, very rare when complete with all three parts in the original boards with the original printed spine labels..... More
Item #3950

London: Henry Colburn, 1839. First edition, and a virtually mint copy, almost entirely unopened. “The voyage of the Beagle has been by far the most important event in my life, and has determined my whole career” (Charles Darwin, Life and Letters I, p. 61). “The five years of the voyage..... More
Item #4562

Paris: chez Henry Le Gras, au troisième pilier de la grand’ Salle du Palais, à L couronnée, 1649. First edition of Descartes’s important psychological treatise, one of his most influential works, and the last work published before his death in the following year. This is a fine copy in an..... More
Item #4125

Philadelphia: Lea and Blanchard, 1845. The Haskell F. Norman copy, presentation copy inscribed by the translator, of the first the first modern textbook of psychiatry. Norman 727. “Esquirol’s book, compiled from papers and articles published over the past two decades, summarized the experience gained over a lifetime of observation and..... More
Item #3258