Gould, John | The first and likely finest survey of the subject

Property from the Carnegie Museum of Natural History, sold to benefit the care of the Museum's 22 million specimens and objects

Gould, John

The Mammals of Australia. London: Taylor and Francis for the author, [1845-] 1863

3 volumes, folio (547 x 366 mm). 182 hand-colored lithographed plates by Gould and H.C. Richter; title-pages spotted, two plates in first volume with faint spotting, another in third volume as well, some very light scattered spotting to text. Publisher's dark green morocco gilt, gilt edges; some rubbing, a little shelf wear. 

"It was not until I arrived in the country [Australia], and found myself surrounded by objects as strange as if I had been transported to another planet, that I conceived the idea of devoting a portion of my attention to the mammalian class of its extraordinary fauna" (Gould, Preface).

"This was one of the most important works ever attempted by Gould, and he has often told me that he considered that he deserved more praise for bringing out this work than for any other that he attempted, because he did it for the love of science only, knowing well that it could never be remunerative" (Sharpe, Analytical Index to the Works, p. xviii).

Of the many species depicted here for the first time, at least twenty are now extinct. 

REFERENCE:

Ferguson 10032; McGill/Wood, p. 365; Nissen ZBI 1661

PROVENANCE:

Cecil George Savile Foljambe (bookplate) — Library of the Carnegie Museum of Natural History (bookplate recording 22 November 1910 purchase)