First Edition. 10 vol. 4to. 5 vol. for the text, and 5 vol. for the
planches enluminées.
Jefferson made several attempts to obtain the 6th volume of this work. On May 2, 1805 he wrote from Washington to Reibelt
in Philadelphia: “
I have 10 vol(
~
s)
of the Quarto edition of the Oiseaux de Buffon, with planches enluminées, but they go only to plate 646. being 5. vol(
~
s)
of text, & 5. vol(
~
s)
of plates. could you undertake to import the residue of the work for me, ready bound: for otherwise binding here costs as
much as the book . . .
”
Reibelt wrote immediately to inquire about the binding so that the remaining volumes could be similarly bound. Jefferson replied on May
5: “
I recieved last night yours of the 3
d. the volumes of the Oiseaux de Buffon which I possess are bound in that kind of binding which has been most common in France
for many years, spotted, the leaves red on the edge, and double lettered on red.
”
“
L’edition in 4
to. des oiseaux de Buffon
” was one of the books ordered by Jefferson from Reibelt’s Bordeaux catalogue on January 20, 1806, and six months later, on
June 16,
A. G. Dufour, in sending the bill for books bought through
T. H. Backer, added the note: “Le 6
e volume des Oiseaux de Buffon avec planches enluminées n’a pu d’obtenir de suite; il est necessaire d’avoir deux ou trois
mois d’avance, tant pour l’enlumineuse des planches que l’on ne trouve pas prêtes, que pour la reliure &c. d’après des nouveaux
ordres, il y aura moyen de se faire preparer ce volume rel. à peu près qu’on le desire.”
George Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon, 1707-1788, French naturalist. For Jefferson’s opinions on the theories of de Buffon, see the
Notes on Virginia
, where he discusses them at length.
[1021]
17
Wilson’s American Ornithology.
fol.
1815 Catalogue, page 46. no. 43, as above, fol 8 vols bound in 7.
1831 Catalogue, page 91. no. J. 77, as above, 9 v folio; Philadelphia, 1804-’14.
WILSON,
Alexander.
American Ornithology; or, The Natural History of the Birds of the United States: Illustrated with Plates Engraved and Colored
from Original Drawings taken from Nature. By Alexander Wilson. Vol. I [-IX].
Philadelphia: Published by
Bradford and Inskeep, Printed by
Robert [and Robert and William] Carr,
1808-1814.
QL674 .W73
First Edition. 9 vol. Folio. Vol. I, 82 leaves: [ ]
3, B-Z, Aa-Rr
2, Ss
1; vol. II, 83 leaves: [ ]
1, B-Z, Aa-Tt
2; vol. III, 59 leaves: [ ]
1, B-Z, Aa-Gg
2; vol. IV, 49 leaves; [ ]
1, B-Z, Aa-Bb
2; vol. V, 60 leaves: [ ]
1, B-Z, Aa-Hh
2, the last a blank; vol. VI, 55 leaves: [ ]
1,
a-d, D-Z, Aa-Cc
2, the last a blank; vol. VII, 65 leaves: [ ]
1, B-Z, Aa-Kk
2; vol. VIII, 74 leaves: [ ]
2, B-Z, Aa-Oo
2, the last a blank; vol. IX, 77 leaves: [ ]
1, B-Z, Aa-Qq
2; 76 plates of birds, drawn and colored by A. Wilson, engraved by A. Lawson, J. G. Warnecke, and others. The last two volumes were issued after Wilson’s death, edited by George Ord. The list of Subscribers in the last volume includes Thomas Jefferson, the Congress Library, Patrick MacGruder, Joseph Milligan,
Beverly Chew and many others. The Library of Congress copy from which this collation was made has the 2nd issue of vol. I.
Sabin 104597.
Agassiz IV, 572, no. 2.
Strong,
Bibliography of Birds, II, page 913.
Giebel,
Thesaurus Ornithologiae, I, page 212.
The last volume of this work had not been issued when Jefferson sold his library to Congress. The entry in the 1815 catalogue
calls therefore for eight volumes only. The ninth volume was delivered to Congress on publication.
Jefferson was one of the original subscribers. A printed Prospectus of the work, dated April 6, 1807, was sent in October
by Rapine of Capitol Hill to Jefferson, who on October 9 wrote to Wilson: “
Th: Jefferson having a few days ago only recieved a copy of the printed proposals for publishing a work on ”
