Description:
Dordrecht: by Abraham Blussé and Son, 1771.2 volumes in one, Folio (524 x 345mm) 2 volumes, folio (524 x 345mm). Hand-coloured engraved frontispiece and 91 fine hand-coloured engraved plates, one double-page, by or after Knorr, B.R. Dietschlin, G.F. Dietsch and others, 4pp. list of subscribers). Contemporary calf-backed speckled boards, title labels on spines.
FIRST EDITION in Dutch, Number 64 of 99 Copies.
One of the finest colour-plate natural history books, illustrating specimens from the leading collections of Nuremberg. The plates depict mainly marine and zoological subjects, but also include a number of fine depictions of minerals. It is often said that the beauty of these illustrations exceeds that of their models.
Georg Wolfgang Knorr (1705-1761), German palaeontologist, painter, engraver and art dealer, engraved portraits, landscapes and animal studies after Dürer.
In the eighteenth century, Nuremberg became the leading city in the production of fine illustrated natural history books. This… Read More