Beschreibung:

BLOCH, Marcus Elieser (1723-1799). Ichthyologie, ou histoire naturelle, générale et particulière des poissons. Avec des figures enliminées, dessinées d'après nature. Translated from the German by Jean-Charles Thibault de Laveaux. Berlin, Paris and London: Chez l'auteur, Didot le jeune and White & sons. Imprimerie Louis Phillippe Wegener, 1785-1788. Parts I-VI only (of 12) in 3 volumes, 2° (475 x 279mm). Half-titles, engraved title vignettes. 216 FINE HAND-COLOURED ENGRAVED PLATES by F.G.Berger, Berger sen., G.Bodenehr, C.Darchow, P.Haas, J.F.Henning, C.Ludwig Schmidt, J.G.Schmidt and others after J.F.Hennig, Krüger jun. and others. (Lacks portrait.) Contemporary figured calf gilt (spines and some corners neatly repaired, extremities rubbed, inner hinges strengthened). Provenance : Bengt Bellanders (bookplate). FIRST EDITION IN FRENCH. Internally a fine clean part set of the most beautiful book on fishes ever published. Many of the plates are heightened in silver, some are printed in brilliant colours and finished by hand. Bloch was born in Ansbach and studied medicine and the natural sciences; he practised as a physician in Berlin, and whilst the Ichthyologie is his masterpiece, he also wrote various other important scientific works. The German edition, entitled Allgemeine Naturgeschichte der Fische , was published between 1782 and 1795. The second part of this French edition was also completed in 1795 with a total plate count of 432. Nissen ZBI 416; Wood p.244. (3)