From the Library - Len Mullenger
Naturalist's Library by Sir William Jardine
From the Introduction:
“It is with the view of enabling all classes
to procure information regarding the Great Works of Creation, at a moderate
price, in a convenient shape, and in the most accurate manner, that
the Proprietors of the Naturalist’s Library have embarked in the
undertaking.”
William
Jardine was born in Edinburgh in 1800 and died at Sandown, Isle of
Wight, 74 years later. In 1821 he inherited Jardine Hall near Lockerbie
and became the 7th Baronet of Applegirth in Dumfriesshire. He was
a Natural Historian and not only carried out research but was determined
to bring his love of Natural History to the general public. He was
eminent as an ornithologist but also had a reputation as an ichthyologist
(fish), entomologist (insects) and botanist. He was author of many
books and magazines but is best known for his 40 volume The Naturalist
Library for which he was editor and publisher. It is subdivided into
Ornithology (14 volumes) Mammalia (13 volumes) Entomology (7 volumes)
and Ichthyology (6 volumes). The etcher/engraver for all 40 volumes
in this series was his brother-in-law , the Scottish artist William
Lizars. Jardine himself was a gifted naturalist and artist. Many of
his original water colors are in the Natural History Museum, London
and in the Royal Scottish Museum, Edinburgh. The hand colored engravings
in The Naturalist's Library are based on paintings by some of the
finest natural history artists known - some past, as Maria Sybilla
Merian in the entomology section, and some contemporary, as William
Swainson and Edward Lear in ornithology. Jardine himself wrote 14
of the volumes. He started issuing it in 1833 at six shilling a copy.
It was an immediate success as never before had high quality colour
reproductions been availabe at that price. The plates were hand coloured.
There were about 30 plates per book and the first print run was 10,000
copies. 30 plates per book, 40 volumes, 10,000 print run make a mind-boggling
12 million plates to be coloured! He must have kept an army of colourists
in work. Because of these books there was an explosion of interest
in Natural History in Victorian Britain. He also republished some
earlier neglected books such as Gilbert White's The Natural History
and Antiquities of Selbourne which is also in the Charlecote
Library. He also produced an affordable edition of Alexander Wilson's
The Birds of America. I do not know if that is in the library.
Young Rhesus Monkey
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Green Woodpecker
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Tragopan Hastings-Male
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Sagra Bugetii, male and female
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Len Mullenger is a Sunday volunteer guide. Any comments
are welcome and can be sent to len@musicweb-international.com
