£55
Friend of Charles Darwin, Henry Denny (1803-1871)
Monographia Psephalidarum et Scydmaenidarum Brittaniae, Henry
Denny, pub. Norwich S Wilkin, Upper Haymarket, sold also by Burks
and Kinnebrook; Matchett and Stevenson; J. Parsons, and John Stacy,
Norwich: and in London by Baldwin, Cradock, and Joy, Paternoster
Row and W. Wood 428 Strand. 1825 First edition. Octavo, publisher's
textured cloth, few small marks, nothing egregious. Paper label to
spine. 74 pp. 2pp subscribers' list, slightly loose but still attached to
text block. 14 hand-coloured plates. One or two pencil annotations. A
VG copy in the original publisher's cloth of this scarce title on beetles.
With
Monographia Anoplurorum Britanniae, or An Essay on the British
Species of Parasitic Insects belonging to the Order Anoplura of Leach.
by Henry Denny, pub. Henry G. Bohn, York Street, Covent Garden.
1842. 262 pp. 26 coloured plates to rear. Publisher's catalogue.
Original cloth decorated in blind. Small patch abraded to the front
board. Spine ruled in gilt with gilt title. Couple of abrasions to the
spine cloth with wear at the top and bottom. The back strip is
detaching but still in place. West's pencil annotations to the front
include a note where he chastises Denny writing 'The author of this
book would have greatly increased its value had he reserved his pious
outbursts for a more suitable publication....'
Hand stamp of George West to pastedowns of both titles.
(2)
The following lots of books represent the library of George West.
West's biographical details are hard to pin down, his date of birth
unknown, (probably around the 1880's) and his death sometime after
1945. He is known to have worked as an assistant and then lecturer in
Botany at the University of Dundee from 1906. At that time the
university was a constituent college of St Andrews University. West
seems to have remained there until around 1926. In his publication
'Practical Principles of Plain Photo Micrography' (1916) he describes
himself as a lecturer in Botany. Most of the books in the sale bear the
handstamp, 'George West' to the front pastedowns. Many volumes bear
extracts from booksellers' catalogues with prices of the titles,
suggesting that West liked to keep up with the current values of his
library.
The books represent a working library and many are also
annotated in pencil in his hand, cross-referencing other works and
adding his comments. To the front of the first volume of Walker's
Diptera (see lot no.) he has inserted his handwritten poem, 'To the
Future Owners of this book'.
Geordie has now turned up his toes
And gone aloft to seek repose
From various varmints nips and stings,
Especially those base mankind brings...
.....
...He trusts the child who gets this book
Will on the various notes just look
And feel that every pencil stroke
Helps on the game dear Walker wrote...
Although a botanist by profession, his main interest, judging by
his library appears to have been entomology and amongst the books
are some rare titles in that field many dating from the nineteenth
century, a golden age for the natural sciences. Many of the giants in
the field of Entomology are represented in the books and there are
good sets of Curtis, Donovan and Stephens with many exquisite, hand-
coloured illustrations. Geology was another of his interests, as well as
microscopy.
What little is known of George West is largely gleaned from a
publication from Hereford Museum published in 2007. West had
donated a large collection of mineralogical specimens to the Museum
in 1945. His connection with Hereford, however, appears to be
tenuous and the man remains something of an enigma.
Fees apply to the hammer price:
Room and Absentee Bids:
24% inc VAT*
Online and Autobids:
24% inc VAT*
