On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life.

DARWIN, Charles.

$11,000.00

Item Number: 96973

London: John Murray, 1860.

Rare second edition, second issue, in Freeman’s binding variant “a” of Darwin’s magnum opus. Freeman 376; Norman 594. Octavo, original publisher’s green cloth. In excellent condition with the spine gilt bright, contemporary owner’s signature to the title, marginalia on pages 72 and 132. A nice example.

Darwin “revolutionized our methods of thinking and our outlook on the natural order of things. The recognition that constant change is the order of the universe had been finally established and a vast step forward in the uniformity of nature had been taken” (PMM 344). “Without question a watershed work in the history of modern life sciences, Darwin’s Origin elaborated a proposition that species slowly evolve from common ancestors through the mechanism of natural selection. As he himself expected, Darwin’s theory became, and continues to be in some circles, the object of intense controversy” (American Philosophical Society). “The five years [of Darwin’s voyage on the Beagle] were the most important event in Darwin’s intellectual life and in the history of biological science. Darwin sailed with no formal training. He returned a hard-headed man of science… The experiences of his five years in the Beagle, how he dealt with them, and what they led to, built up into a process of epoch-making importance in the history of thought” (PMM). Darwin wrote in his diary that all 1250 copies of the first edition, published on November 24, were sold on the first day; however, more accurately, nearly all of the edition had been sold to the trade immediately, with the exception of personal copies set aside for Darwin and review copies.