270 - SAUSSURE, Horace Bénédict de. Observations on the Surface of Leaves and Petals. [Bound together] New Discoveries Made with Needham’s Microscope.

SAUSSURE, Horace Bénédict de. Observations on the Surface of Leaves and Petals. [Bound together] New Discoveries Made with Needham’s Microscope. A combination of two 18th-century natural history works: the rare first edition of Saussure’s debut work and the famous microscopic observations by Needham and Trembley (1747), complete with its 7 fold-out plates. A distillation of Enlightenment thought at the heart of the infinitely small! Geneva, n.p., 1762. In-12, fawn half-basane with corner pieces, smooth spine decorated with gilt fillets and dotted fillets framing the gilt title, yellow edges. XXIII and 102 pp. Spine damaged (cracks, a few stains, fragile top cap), some rubbing and a small tear in the leather at one corner. A tear along the side of page 73, a few foxing spots. A rare first edition of the first book published by the famous naturalist Horace Bénédict de Saussure (1740–1799). Dedicated to his mentor Albrecht von Haller, this pioneering study lays the foundations of microscopic plant anatomy. It describes, with remarkable insight, the cellular organization of the epidermis and the system of pores (stomata) in plants. Two stamps from the Institute of Botany at the University of Geneva. Bound together with: NEEDHAM, John Turberville. New Discoveries Made with the Microscope. Leiden, printed by Elie Luzac, 1747. 8 ff.n.ch., 179 pp., 7 engraved plates. First edition of the French translation of this study in experimental biology by the Englishman John Turberville Needham (1713–1781). It is illustrated with 7 fold-out plates and includes a treatise on bouquet polyps and funnel polyps by the Genevan naturalist Abraham Trembley (1710–1784), who authored the translation. A charming collection in a period binding, a testament to scientific progress in the microscopic exploration of living organisms in the 18th century.