Lot 1478 , Parkinson, James - Organic Remains of a Former World. An Examination of the Mineralised Remains of the Vegetables and Animals of the Antediluvian World; Generally Termed Extraneous Fossils, 1st edition, vol. 2 (of 3), 4t

° Parkinson, James - Organic Remains of a Former World. An Examination of the Mineralised Remains of the Vegetables and Animals of the Antediluvian World; Generally Termed Extraneous Fossils, 1st edition, vol. 2 (of 3), 4to, cloth, title signed by the author’s daughter, Emma Dimock, also the colourist of this and other copies of the work, half title, hand-coloured frontispiece, vignette to title and 19 engraved plates, most hand-coloured, Nornaville and Fell et al, London, 1808. James Parkinson (1755-1824) was a distinguished English physician, geologist, and politician. Among his contributions to science, his studies on gout stand out, but most notably his Essay on the Shaking Palsy (1817), in which he described the disease that now bears his name - Parkinsons disease.

One of his greatest interests was geology and palaeontology, and he owned one of the most important fossil collections of his time. He published this collection in the work Organic Remains of a Former World, in which he sought to provide a scientific explanation of fossils, personally illustrating the book himself. He was one of the 13 founding members of the Geological Society of London in 1807.

In geological circles, Parkinson’s name is associated with several fossils, including Apiocrinus parkinsoni, the ammonite Parkinsonia parkinsoni, the gastropod Rostellaria parkinsoni, and the stemless palm Nipa parkinsoni. After his death, much of his collection was acquired by the Natural History Museum and the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge.
£150-200

Condition:
Condition: Front cover almost detached, splits and loss to spine late ink ownership inscription to front inner board, text and plates generally good - only very light spotting.