The Elements of Conchology; or Natural History of Shells: According to the Linnean System. Illustrated with Nine Coloured Engravings
London: J. Gleave, Printer, c. 1816. Full Leather. Very Good binding. Item #8915
Octavo. [8], 168 pp., 9 colored plates. First edition. Modern leather binding. Variant title page and front matter. Binding is fresh and without notable wear; contemporary owner name on the title page; contents are generally toned. A presentable, untrimmed copy with all nine plates sensitively colored by hand. 1959 Bernard Quaritch identify this as having belonged to Lula B. (Mrs. C. J.) Siekman, author, dealer, and conchologist from Florida.
C. Davies Sherborn's short bibliography in the pages of the Proceedings of the Malacological Society of London (1905) find this to be the first work by Brown on the subject. While we have been unable to find bibliographical references to this, it was issued in at least two states, this present state with a title page noting "London:" but lacking the publisher and date as well as some other content and typographical differences. Additionally, the preface of the state with the Lackington, Allen, & Co. imprint is also a paragraph longer; there is a tail-piece at the end of the contents of this copy not present on the Lackington imprint; and finally, the ornament on the first page of the text differs slightly between states. A fairly careful collation of this copy with a digital copy leads us to believe that while the frontmatter was partially reset, the text appears unchanged even matching in some battered ornaments and misaligned letters. We speculate that this state precedes the state with the full imprint, possibly privately printed before being picked up by Lackington, Allen & Co. We have been unable to substantiate that speculation as none of the references consulted note any issue points in the front matter. Nissen notes Lackington, Allen and Co. (Nissen ZBI, 606); Sherborn does not include publisher in his bibliography (Sherborn 1).
Outside of conchological circles, Brown's work is known for the being the basis of Edgar Allan Poe's The Conchologist's First Book (1839). Accusations of outright plagiarism have come from some quarters. Blanck is more diplomatic writing: "This publication is not, essentially, an original work. Rather it is an adaptation of the Conchologist's Text-Book, Glasgow, 1833, by Captain Thomas Brown" (BAL 16131, ref.)—a later edition of this present Elements of Conchology. Heartman and Canny, p. 41-44.
Price: $350.00