{"title":"Books of Change","description":"\u003cp\u003eDiscover the literature from some of the greatest minds of pioneering environmental sciences and biology, featuring Charles Darwin, Alfred Russel Wallace, and literature by J.G Ballard. Find a rare book that made a difference this Earth Day.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"hetweet-cottrell-watson-topographical-botany-inscribed-first-edition-113056","title":"Topographical Botany.","description":"\u003ch4 class=\"srb-faux-head\"\u003esupporting data for darwin's Origin of Species\u003c\/h4\u003eFirst edition, presentation set inscribed by the author on each title, 'Mary Edmonds from the Author, H.C.W. 1873' and 'Mary Edmonds from the Author, June 24th 1874'.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eInspired by the work of Alexander von Humboldt, Hewett Cottrell Watson (1804-1881) became Victorian Britain's leading phytogeographer (the study of plant distribution), and his research contributed to Charles Darwin's Origin of Species.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'Watson's major botanical endeavour was producing several versions of a work first entitled Outlines of the Geographical Distribution of British Plants (1832); it reached its most extensive form as Cybele Britannica, or, British Plants, and their Geographical Relations (4 vols., 1847–59). Volume four contains his most detailed phytogeographical conclusions. After publishing several supplements, he summarized his data in Topographical Botany: Being Local and Personal Records towards Shewing the Distribution of British Plants (2 vols., 1873–4). He was working on a second edition of it when he died; it was completed by John G. Baker and William W. Newbould (1883) (Oxford Dictionary of National Biography). Watson was also responsible for the foundation of botanical exchange clubs and the publication of the London Catalogue of British Plants, which amassed the contributions of thousands of amateur and professional botanists across Britain.'\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFirst editions, presentation copies inscribed from the author; 2 vols, 8vo; map in volume I; occasional light spotting to the contents and edges of the text block of volume II; original green cloth, titles to spines and upper boards gilt, yellow coated endpapers, corners and edges of boards bumped, dampstain to lower boards, a very good set; 740 and 367pp.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e","brand":"WATSON, Hewett Cottrell.","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49693455876401,"sku":"113056","price":400.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0733\/4694\/1233\/files\/113056.jpg?v=1780915147"},{"product_id":"charles-darwin-fertilisation-of-orchids-first-issue-1862-113167","title":"On the Various Contrivances by which British and Foreign Orchids are Fertilised by Insects,","description":"\u003ch4 class=\"srb-faux-head\"\u003ethe first volume of supporting evidence for the origin of species\u003c\/h4\u003eFirst edition, first issue, of this important contribution to Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection. Freeman's variant a with vertically lined cloth and ads dated December, 1861.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOrchids 'was concerned with working out in detail the relationships between sexual structures of orchids and the insects which fertilise them, their evolution being attributed to natural selection. It is therefore the first of the volumes of supporting evidence. It was much praised by botanists, but sold only about 6,000 copies before the turn of the century' (Freeman, The Works of Charles Darwin, p. 112). Darwin wrote to his publisher John Murray in September, 1861 that, 'I think this little volume will do good to the Origin' (Freeman).\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn his autobiography, Darwin stated that, though the preparation of Orchids had taken ten months, 'most of the facts had been slowly accumulated during several previous years. During the summer of 1839, and, I believe, during the previous summer, I was led to attend to the cross-fertilisation of flowers by the aid of insects, from having come to the conclusion in my speculations on the origin of species, that crossing played an important part in keeping specific forms constant. I attended to the subject more or less during every subsequent summer... For some years before 1862 I had specially attended to the fertilisation of our British orchids; and it seemed to me the best plan to prepare as complete a treatise on this group of plants as well as I could, rather than to utilise the great mass of matter which I had slowly collected with respect to other plants. My resolve proved a wise one; for since the appearance of my book, a surprising number of papers and separate works on the fertilisation of all kinds of flowers have appeared; and these are far better done than I could possibly have effected'.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFirst edition, first impression, first issue; 8vo in twelves; folding plate, woodcuts within the text, 32-page publisher's ads dated December, 1861 to rear, Edmonds \u0026amp; Remnants binder's ticket to rear pastedown, bookplate, contents partially unopened, a few stray spots and tiny marks but overall contents clean; housed in a modern slipcase, original plum cloth rebacked with the original spine laid down with some loss from the ends, titles to spine and orchid to upper board gilt, decorative design to boards blocked in blind, coated endpapers, corners restored, some loss of size from cloth, very good condition; 365pp.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eFreeman (The Works of Charles Darwin), 800.\u003c\/i\u003e","brand":"DARWIN, Charles.","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49818941718833,"sku":"113167","price":3250.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0733\/4694\/1233\/files\/113167_0dad6e93-7ab1-469d-a126-20f91f88a9e4.jpg?v=1780912360"},{"product_id":"jg-ballard-drowned-world-first-uk-edition-113841","title":"The Drowned World.","description":"\u003ch4 class=\"srb-faux-head\"\u003ekey climate change novel\u003c\/h4\u003eA truly excellent first hardback edition of this key climate change novel, as with his 1966 novel The Crystal World anticipating the more universal adoption of climate change science by many years. The novel also imagines mankind's innate primitive tendencies when exposed to an environment more akin to the Triassic period. This edition is preceded by a US paperback edition, but this Gollancz edition is the preferred, collector's edition.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFirst UK edition, first hardback edition, first impression; 8vo; unmarked internally; publisher's red boards, gilt lettering to spine, with the unclipped dust-jacket, ownership inscription to front flap, small nicks to corners and spine ends, else very good.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e","brand":"BALLARD, J.G.","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50092721996081,"sku":"113841","price":1375.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0733\/4694\/1233\/files\/113841_a7e4c7c9-dea5-4968-8836-e5f8115b7c43.jpg?v=1780916315"},{"product_id":"alfred-russell-wallace-island-life-first-edition-1880-114917","title":"Island Life:","description":"\u003ch4 class=\"srb-faux-head\"\u003e\u003c\/h4\u003eFirst edition, first impression of this significant volume by the co-discoverer of evolution by natural selection. This copy with the bookplate of the author and nautical chart publisher James Frederick Imray (1829-1891).\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIsland Life was 'a popular supplement to and completion of' Wallace's Geographical Distribution of Animals (preface), and 'was one of his most successful books. It surveyed the problems of the dispersal and speciation of plants and animals on islands which he categorized, following Darwin, as oceanic or continental. The latter type Wallace subdivided into \"continental islands of recent origin\", like Great Britain, and ancient continental islands, such as Madagascar. Unlike Darwin's theories of erratic spread to account for the discontinuous distribution of types, Wallace favoured theories of continuous spread followed by selective extinctions thus creating the appearance of gaps' (Darwin Online).\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFirst edition, first impression; large 8vo; 2 maps, colour map frontispiece, engravings throughout the text, single leaf of undated publisher's ads at rear, foxing to early and late leaves and occasionally to contents, bookplate of James Frederick Imray, corners of FF5 and FF6 torn, the latter with loss not affecting text; original green pebble-patterned cloth blocked in gilt and black, brown coated endpapers, spine rolled, cloth rubbed with wear at the joints and corners, corners bumped, closed tear in the cloth at the head of the spine, very good condition; 526pp.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eFreeman (British Natural History Books), 3865.\u003c\/i\u003e","brand":"WALLACE, Alfred Russell.","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54982947438967,"sku":"114917","price":850.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0733\/4694\/1233\/files\/114917_a6dac0bd-3dd9-4f28-a053-ca5e630da7b0.jpg?v=1780910530"},{"product_id":"wallace-geographical-distribution-animals-first-edition-1876-117766","title":"The Geographical Distribution of Animals","description":"\u003ch4 class=\"srb-faux-head\"\u003ethe development of zoogeography\u003c\/h4\u003eFirst edition, a handsomely bound set of this important work. With the bookplates of San Francisco businessman and University of California Regent James K. Moffit, Jr. (1865-1955).\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'Wallace studied the fauna of the Malay peninsula and was struck both with its resemblances to and differences from that of South America. His studies resulted in this world-wide study, a pioneering work in zoogeography, and Wallace's most comprehensive monograph' (Hook \u0026amp; Norman, The Norman Library of Science and Medicine 2178).\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFirst edition; 2 volumes, 8vo (22 x 14 cm); colour folding map frontispiece to volume I, 6 other colour maps of which 2 are folding, and 20 engraved plates, errata list to volume I on the verso of the plate list and on a separate leaf in volume II, bookplate to each volume, contents spotted; early 20th century green half morocco with green pebble-grain cloth sides, spines gilt in compartments with bishop's mitre and crow tools, marbled endpapers, top edges gilt, bindings little rubbed at the extremities, a very good set; 503 \u0026amp; 607pp.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eHook \u0026amp; Norman, The Norman Library of Science and Medicine 2178.\u003c\/i\u003e","brand":"WALLACE, Alfred Russel.","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56248917557623,"sku":"117766","price":2750.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0733\/4694\/1233\/files\/117766_8fa0cd0c-2412-414d-b109-48cdb946db09.jpg?v=1780922391"},{"product_id":"william-mcintosh-british-marine-food-fishes-first-edition-120911","title":"The Life-Histories of British Marine Food-Fishes.","description":"\u003ch4 class=\"srb-faux-head\"\u003ea pioneer of fisheries research\u003c\/h4\u003eFirst edition of this scarce early work on the embryology and developmental stages of commercial fish species. Illustrated with twenty-one beautiful and detail chromolithographic plates.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThough educated as a physician, author William Carmichael M'Intosh (1838-1931) had a life-long interest in natural history and came under the tutelage of St. Andrews marine zoologist G.J. Allman. 'In 1882 the chair of natural history in the University of St Andrews became vacant and M'Intosh, fulfilling a long-term ambition, returned to his native city as professor of zoology, a position which he occupied until his retirement in 1917. In 1883 he was appointed to conduct investigations on behalf of a royal commission on Scottish sea fisheries (the trawling commission), and as part of this work set up one of the country's first marine laboratories at St Andrews. These researches were summarized in Life Histories of British Marine Food-Fishes (with Arthur Thomas Masterman, 1897) and The Resources of the Sea (1898)... In fishery research he was one of the pioneers, and although many of his conclusions (such as his belief that human activity would not seriously deplete marine resources) are now outdated, he had a clearer conception of the broad outlines of marine ecology than many of his contemporaries.' (Oxford Dictionary of National Biography).\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFirst edition, 8vo; chromolithographic frontispiece and 20 plates, engravings within the text, inked ownership inscription dated 1909 to the front free endpaper, a little spotting to the endpapers, half title, and edges of text block; original blue pebble grain cloth blocked in gilt with fish designs to the spine and boards, spine rolled, cloth a little worn at the edges and joints, some dark ink spots affecting the boards, very good condition; 516pp.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e","brand":"MCINTOSH, William Carmichael; MASTERMAN, Arthur Thomas.","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56298356638071,"sku":"120911","price":500.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0733\/4694\/1233\/files\/120911_f854dffe-0b59-48f9-bc37-50a287188889.jpg?v=1781110883"},{"product_id":"charles-darwin-origin-species-london-1902-121856","title":"The Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection,","description":"\u003ch4 class=\"srb-faux-head\"\u003e\u003c\/h4\u003eA pleasingly-bound example of Darwin's Origin of the Species, widely regarded as 'the most influential scientific work of the 19th century' (Horblit) and 'certainly the most important biological book ever written' (Freeman), in which Darwin explained his concept of evolutionary adaptation through natural selection, which would become the foundation of modern evolutionary theory.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e8vo (16 x 11 cm); illustrative graph to contents verso, woodcut device tot title, occasional underlining in pencil, slight spotting; publisher's vellum gilt, yapp edges, top-edge gilt, others uncut, slightly soiled; [8], 454pp.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e","brand":"DARWIN, Charles.","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56654955348343,"sku":"121856","price":250.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0733\/4694\/1233\/files\/121856_bad80cf0-3f3e-4022-b872-ee69fe37cead.jpg?v=1780912359"},{"product_id":"henry-walter-bates-naturalist-rivers-amazon-first-edition-121548","title":"The Naturalist on the River Amazons.","description":"\u003ch4 class=\"srb-faux-head\"\u003ea supporter of darwinian evolution\u003c\/h4\u003eFirst edition of this 'major contribution to the knowledge and literature of Amazonia' by a significant colleague of Charles Darwin (Oxford Dictionary of National Biography).\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHenry Walter Bates (1825-1892) was a self-taught naturalist and friend of Alfred Russell Wallace. In 1848, at Wallace's suggestion, the pair set out on a specimen collecting trip to the Amazon 'in the hope of contributing ideas to the debate about the origin of species' (ODNB). Wallace returned to Britain in 1852, but Bates stayed for eleven years and 'dispatched some 14,700 species back to England, 8000 of them new to science' (ODNB). On his return he began publishing a series of significant scientific papers, the most important of which described the phenomenon now known as Batesian mimicry, in which a species evolves to mimic another that is toxic or otherwise dangerous to predators.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'The phenomenon offered supporting evidence to the arguments on natural selection expounded by Charles Darwin in The Origin of Species (1859). In a letter to Bates in November 1862, Darwin described the paper as one of the most \"remarkable and admirable\" he had ever read (Stecher, 36), and Bates became an advocate of Darwinian ideas, making early reference to them at meetings of the Entomological and Linnean societies. In 1860 the two men had begun a correspondence which lasted until Darwin's death in 1882. Darwin frequently asked Bates for information on the insects and other wildlife of Amazonia, and it was at his suggestion that Bates wrote an account of his travel experiences, Darwin recommending Bates to his own publisher, John Murray' (ODNB).\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe Naturalist on the River Amazons 'was an immediate success and has become a travel classic. It remained in print through the nineteenth century, in eight editions, and was also published in Russian, German, and Swedish in 1865, 1866, and 1872 respectively. It is a curiously structured book, part detailed diary, part general account of the region, and part precise description of particular fauna, but it provides a fascinating record of the natural environment and wildlife of Amazonia before the major impact of the rubber boom. There are also detailed descriptions of the way of life and customs of Amerindian groups Bates encountered on his travels. The book's enduring appeal lies in its elegant yet scientific pen-portraits of places, people, and wildlife, as in his description of the wings of the varied and beautiful butterflies he observed around Ega' (ODNB).\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFirst edition; 2 vols, 8vo; engraved frontispiece in each volume, 7 plates, folding map, engravings within the text, 32-page publisher's ads at rear of vol. I, Edmonds \u0026amp; Remnants ticket to rear pastedown of vol. I, contemporary blindstamp of J. \u0026amp; T. Spencer bookseller of Leicester to front free endpaper of vol. I, contemporary ownership signature to the front blank of volume Iresidue of printed material to front pastedown of vol. I, short closed tear in the margin of leaf EE in vol. II, some spotting to contents, primarily the early and late leaves of vol. I, contents lightly toned; original reddish-brown publisher's cloth, titles to spines and pictorial design to upper boards gilt, red endpapers, cloth rubbed with some wear at the corners and ends of spines, spines toned, some small marks and spots, endpapers of volume I partially darkened, rear hinge of volume II just starting, very good condition; 351 \u0026amp; 423pp.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e","brand":"BATES, Henry Walter.","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56654960984439,"sku":"121548","price":3500.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0733\/4694\/1233\/files\/121548_a2ab4ccf-5940-4d05-a98c-0b73202414bb.jpg?v=1780915070"}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0733\/4694\/1233\/collections\/FIXED_CATAGORY_BUTTONS_8.png?v=1776699502","url":"https:\/\/shapero.com\/en-us\/collections\/books-of-change.oembed","provider":"Shapero Rare Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}