Lot 38
Regency science notebook
'Manuscript in Natural History'
Auction: 02 October 2025 from 10:00 BST
Description
[cover-title], c.1815-16. 8vo (18 x 11cm), sheep-backed marbled boards, 170 pp., written in a neat italic hand, 24 lines to the page, a few diagrams and tables in text, with headings including ‘Planets’, ‘Nature and Effects of Caloric’, ‘Light’, ‘Electricity’, ‘Galvanism', ‘The Atmosphere’, ‘Balls of Fire’, ‘Hydrography’, ‘Geology’, ‘Earthquakes and Volcanoes’, ‘Simple Substances’ (i.e. elements and compounds, including acids and alkalis), etc., pencilled ownership inscription ‘D Cornwall’ to p. 1, the lot sold with a copy of Joseph Hopkins, The Accoucheur's Vade Mecum, 1820, with the ownership inscription ‘David Cornwall, Aberdeen, 1828’ to title-pages (3)
Footnote
An interesting document providing an overview of the extent of general scientific knowledge in Britain in the early 19th century, datable from a reference on page 12 to the last transit of Mercury being November 1815. Recent discoveries and events discussed include Herschel's discovery of infrared radiation (pp. 48-9), Howard's classification of clouds (pp. 97), Priestley's discovery of oxygen (p. 114), Rutherford's discovery of nitrogen (p. 115), James Hutton's theory of ‘volcanism’ (p. 132), Joseph Black's isolation of carbon dioxide (p. 162), and more. A full list of contents is available on request.