255 - ROCCA, Abbé della. A Comprehensive Treatise on Bees, with a New Method of Managing Them, as Practiced on Syra, an Island of the Archipelago; Preceded by a Historical and Economic Overview of That Island.

ROCCA, Abbé della. A Comprehensive Treatise on Bees, with a New Method of Managing Them, as Practiced on Syra, an Island of the Archipelago; Preceded by a Historical and Economic Overview of That Island. First edition of this important late 18th-century treatise on beekeeping, in a full contemporary binding. Paris, Bleuet père—Régent and Bernard for Volume III, 1790. 3 tomes in 3 in-8 volumes, each bound in marbled calfskin, smooth spine decorated with gilt garlands and fleurons, brown leather title label, gilt fillet at the edges. XXXII and 464 pp., 1 unfoldable plate (not included in page count); VIII and 500 pp., 2 ff. of errata; XII and 532 pp., 4 fold-out plates. Spines darkened, normal wear on the joints (a small tear on the top cover of Volume I), blunted corners, top cap missing on Volume III, black ink stains on the title page of Volume II and a stain on the edge, slight water stain on the lower margin of the first leaves of Volume I, rare foxing. Last page of the first volume incorrectly numbered (462 instead of 464). First edition. A complete copy with all 5 fold-out engraved plates, including the view of the island of Syra in Volume I, drawn and engraved by Godefroy of the Imperial Academy of Vienna. Abbé Della Rocca, Vicar General on Syros, presents a work that opens with a historical and economic chronicle of this Cycladic island. In the scientific section, he draws on Hellenic traditions and Greek hive supers to lay the foundations of modern beekeeping. A delightful set in period bindings.