Rare Book Monthly

Articles - May - 2008 Issue

Do You Have A First Edition <i>Origin Of Species?</i> If So, The Darwin Census Wants You

A first edition of On The Origin of Species.

A first edition of On The Origin of Species.


By Michael Stillman

Do you have a copy of the first edition of Charles Darwin's On The Origin of Species? If so, the Darwin Census is looking for you. The Darwin Census is conducting a worldwide search for all first edition copies of this enormously important and influential work. It plans to use the census to create a database of all known copies still in existence, and better understand the details of this printing by discovering its variants.

The project is being undertaken at the University of Cambridge, with Angus Carroll serving as project manager. Here is what they already know. The first edition was published in 1859 by John Murray. They recorded a print run of 1,250 copies. It went on sale on November 24, and sold out the same day. There are known to be certain variants in the first edition. There is a difference in the width of the word "London" on the spine of the original binding, and at least four variations in the advertising pages at the back (including no advertisements). There may well be additional variants not yet identified.

The first objective of the census is to locate and keep track of as many copies as possible of the Origin. Additionally, the Census will strive to learn more about the great work, including three principal goals: (1) to establish the frequency of the known variants; (2) to identify any unknown variants; and (3) to locate missing presentation copies. It is hoped that this last goal will help scholars better understand how the book was received through annotations made by Darwin's contemporaries.

The results of this census will be published next year by Darwin Online. However, ownership information about individual copies will be kept confidential if their owners so desire. The census is timed to be published in 2009, which is the 150th anniversary of the publishing of the Origin of Species, and the 200th birthday of Charles Darwin.

The Census Project has been able to locate many, likely most copies held in libraries and other institutions. However, some such copies are undoubtedly still unaccounted for. What they most need your help with is locating copies that are held by private collectors or booksellers. These are the copies most difficult to find. If you own such a copy, you are requested to contact the Darwin Census. They have a form you can fill out which comes with much helpful guidance, such as where to look for the variants. If you know someone else who has a copy, please pass this message along to that person so he or she will know that the Census is seeking this information.

To learn more about the census, download forms, and respond, please go to the following website: http://darwin-online.org.uk/DarwinCensus.html. You may also contact the Darwin Census by email at darwin.census@gmail.com.

Rare Book Monthly

  • RareBookBuyer.comWe Buy Librairies & Rare Books Nationwide RareBookBuyer.comWe Buy Librairies & Rare Books Nationwide
    RareBookBuyer.com
    We Buy Librairies & Rare Books Nationwide
    RareBookBuyer.com
    We Buy Librairies & Rare Books Nationwide
    RareBookBuyer.com
    Specialized in Purchasing
    Institutional Collections & Deacccessioned Books
    RareBookBuyer.com
    We Buy Librairies & Rare Books Nationwide
    RareBookBuyer.com
    Specialized in Purchasing
    Institutional Collections & Deacccessioned Books
    RareBookBuyer.com
    We Buy Librairies & Rare Books Nationwide
    RareBookBuyer.com
    Specialized in Purchasing
    Institutional Collections & Deacccessioned Books
    RareBookBuyer.com
    We Buy Librairies & Rare Books Nationwide
    RareBookBuyer.com
    Specialized in Purchasing
    Institutional Collections & Deacccessioned Books
    RareBookBuyer.com
    We Buy Librairies & Rare Books Nationwide
  • Sotheby'sSell Your Fine Books & Manuscripts Sotheby'sSell Your Fine Books & Manuscripts
    Sotheby's
    Sell Your Fine Books & Manuscripts
    Sotheby's
    Sell Your Fine Books & Manuscripts
    Sotheby’s: The Shem Tov Bible, 1312 | A Masterpiece from the Golden Age of Spain. Sold: 6,960,000 USD
    Sotheby’s: Ten Commandments Tablet, 300-800 CE | One of humanity's earliest and most enduring moral codes. Sold: 5,040,000 USD
    Sotheby’s: William Blake | Songs of Innocence and of Experience. Sold: 4,320,000 USD
    Sotheby’s: The Declaration of Independence | The Holt printing, the only copy in private hands. Sold: 3,360,000 USD
    Sotheby's
    Sell Your Fine Books & Manuscripts
    Sotheby’s: Thomas Taylor | The original cover art for Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. Sold: 1,920,000 USD
    Sotheby’s: Machiavelli | Il Principe, a previously unrecorded copy of the book where modern political thought began. Sold: 576,000 GBP
    Sotheby’s: Leonardo da Vinci | Trattato della pittura, ca. 1639, a very fine pre-publication manuscript. Sold: 381,000 GBP
    Sotheby’s: Henri Matisse | Jazz, Paris 1947, the complete portfolio. Sold: 312,000 EUR
  • Leland Little, Jan. 22: The First Issue of Robert Frost's A Boy's Will, In Extremely Scarce Binding.
    Leland Little, Jan. 22: Knight's An Account of the Remains of the Worship of Priapus.
    Leland Little, Jan. 22: First Edition of Locke's Important Treatise Some Thoughts Concerning Education.
    Leland Little, Jan. 22: The Richly Illustrated First French Edition of Voyages de Corneille Le Brun par la Moscovie, en Perse, et aux Indes Orientales.
    Leland Little, Jan. 22: Scarce First Issue of An Account of the Province of Carolina in America, Finely Bound and With Celebrated John Speed Map.
    Leland Little, Jan. 22: Humphrey's An Historical Account, Complete with Scarce Folding Maps.
    Leland Little, Jan. 22: First Edition of Chamberlain's Scarce Civil War Memoir The Passing of the Armies.
    Leland Little, Jan. 22: A Rare Photograph of David Bruce Brown and #48 Fiat.
    Leland Little, Jan. 22: George Cruikshank (England, 1792-1878), Archive of Sketches, Notes, and Letters.
    Leland Little, Jan. 22: Extremely Scarce Copy of Die Samländische Ode (The Samland Ode), Signed by Max Pechstein.
    Leland Little, Jan. 22: Andy Warhol's The Thirteen Most Wanted Men Exhibition Catalogue.
    Leland Little, Jan. 22: Edward Ruscha (American, b. 1937), Every Building on the Sunset Strip.

Article Search

Archived Articles

Ask Questions