The World Before the Deluge

New York: D. Appleton and Company, 1872. Leather Bound. Very Good. New York, D. Appleton & Co. (v) [518 pp.] illus., 20 cm. Fully bound in gorgeous contemporary amber pigmented calfskin. Gilt-lettered, burgundy morocco title plate on upper spine. 5 raised bands. 6 compartments. Profusely detailed, gilt-etched decorative flourishes and borders within compartments and on boards. Gilt tooling along board edges and embossed borders on inner boards. Tight binding and solid boards. Moderate shelf wear. Slight rubbing to boards. Discoloration around edges. Minor scuffing to spine. Gilt has faded at points. Loss to small portion of upper spine. Minimal bumping to corner. Slight scuffing to board edges. Speckled page ends. Multicolored, speckled endpapers. Minor loosening, cracking at gutters. Small damp-stain to bottom of inner FFEP. Institutional library stamp on adjacent page reads "GG." Additional library stamp on title page reads "Yale University, Museum." Otherwise, clean, unmarked pages. Black and white, steel-plate engraved illustration entitled "The First Man" adjacent to title page and protected with tissue guard. Various additional illustrations throughout, including charts and diagrams of prehistoric life-forms and landscapes. A well cared for volume in very good condition. Louis Figuier was a renown French Scientist and writer. The nephew of Pierre-Oscar Figuier, he served as Professor of Chemistry at Le Ecole de Pharmacie of Montpellier before moving on to become Doctor of Medicine, as well as agrege of pharmacology, chemistry and physics. He gained his PhD circa 1850. La Terre avant le deluge (originally published in 1863) illustrated by Edouard Riou was one of Figuier's most successful works, gaining critical acclaim from his contemporaries for his thoughts on geological history and the origin of modern man. Influenced by Charles Lyells Geological Evidences of the Antiquity of Man of 1863, the 1867 second edition and future printings abandoned the Garden of Eden shown in the first editions frontispiece for a more accurate depiction of savage men and women wearing animal skins and wielding stone axes. While the majority of copies produced by D. Appleton are bound in blue cloth and far more common, the leather bound edition of the same date is extremely rare. This landmark book would make an exceptional addition to the library of any scholar or geology enthusiast. Please feel free to view our photographs of this beautiful piece. Ships daily.