Modena, Nicola Zanichelli e. Soci, 1864. 8vo. In contemporary half calf with four raised bands and gilt lettering to spine. Reinforced in inner margins and plate with waterstains to lower margin. An unusually fine and well preserved copy, internally as well as externally. XV, 403 pp + 1 plate.
Rare first edition of the first Italian translation of Darwin's seminal ""Origin of Species"", quite unusually, authorized by Darwin himself. The work was very well received and - compared to France and Spain - Darwinism was quickly adopted by Italian biologist and zoologist and meet only little catholic opposition. ""The impact of Darwinism on Italian naturalists was powerful"" the logic and rigorous treatment of the problem of the origin of species as Darwin had presented it, forced zoologists and anthropologists to reconsider those passages of Lamarckisms that they had agreed to with excessive enthusiasm"". (Capanna, Darwinism and the Italian academies). The reception of Darwin's work in France (1862) and Spain (1877) were characterized by a strong chatolic opposition, which also had a strong suppressing effect on the spread of his ideas to academic institutions.Despite of Italy being a catholic stronghold the reception of Darwinism was very favourable and meet very limited criticism from the church:""In contrast to the power Catholicism was able to exert against Darwinism in Spain, it was practically impotent in Italy. Neither could the Italian Catholic intellectual establishment draw upon a repertory of anti-Darwinism arguments from the Italian scientific establishment, as was done in France. As in France under the Third Republic and as was the case sporadically in Spain, the advent of Darwinism in Italy provided a source of ideology for the anticlerical movement. Although Darwinism enjoyed a number of close connections with the English source, the peculiarities of the Italian situation set Darwinism in Italy apart from other situations. Italy was in the forefront in recognizing Darwin, electing him to various academies and societies and awarding him the famous Bressa Prize in 1875. In Italy the translation of the Origin ""1864"" was given an impeccable scientific presentation by Giocanni Canestrini and Leonardo Salimbeni, which avoided the type of situation that arose from the presentation of Darwinism in France by Clémence Royer as a new scientific basis for a secularistic Weltanschauung. As a general explanation, of course, it is reasonable to accept Cermenati's arguments that the favorable receptivity of the scientific community and the general indifference to ecclesiastical objections to Darwinism are the chief factors explaining the quick spread of Darwinism in Italy"". (Glick, The Comparative Reception of Darwinism).Emma Darwin, Darwin's wife, wrote publisher John Murry on the 17th of December: ""Mr Darwin desires me to say that as you have never hesitated to authorize a foreign translation he has taken upon himself to authorise a translation into Italian without consulting you."" When Darwin was informed that his work was being translated into Italian he wrote to his close friend J. D. Hooker: ""There is an Italian Edit. of Origin preparing!!! This makes fifth foreign Edit, ie in five foreign countries. Owen will not be right in telling Longmans that Book wd be utterly forgotten in ten years. Hurrah!"".Freeman no. 706
Torino, Unione Tipografico-Editrice, 1888. 8vo. In comtenporary half vellum with embossed title to spine. First quire partly detached. Occassional light brownspotting throughout. (2), 210, (4) pp. + 3 floded plates and 1 frontiespiece. This
First Italian translation of ""The structure and distribution of coral reefs"", being the first part of the three-part work ""Geology of the Voyage of the Beagle"" (Freeman 271). Only the present first part was transted into Italian.Compared to France and Spain Darwinism was quickly adopted by Italian biologist and zoologist and meet only little catholic opposition. ""The impact of Darwinism on Italian naturalists was powerful"" the logic and rigorous treatment of the problem of the origin of species as Darwin had presented it, forced zoologists and anthropologists to reconsider those passages of Lamarckisms that they had agreed to with excessive enthusiasm"". (Capanna, Darwinism and the Italian academies). The reception of Darwin's worsk in France and Spain were characterized by a strong chatolic opposition, which also had a strong suppressing effect on the spread of his ideas to academic institutions.Despite of Italy being a catholic stronghold the reception of Darwinism was very favourable and meet very limited criticism from the church:""In contrast to the power Catholicism was able to exert against Darwinism in Spain, it was practically impotent in Italy. Neither could the Italian Catholic intellectual establishment draw upon a repertory of anti-Darwinism arguments from the Italian scientific establishment, as was done in France. As in France under the Third Republic and as was the case sporadically in Spain, the advent of Darwinism in Italy provided a source of ideology for the anticlerical movement. Although Darwinism enjoyed a number of close connections with the English source, the peculiarities of the Italian situation set Darwinism in Italy apart from other situations. Italy was in the forefront in recognizing Darwin, electing him to various academies and societies and awarding him the famous Bressa Prize in 1875.""The three parts of Darwin's geological results of the Beagle voyage were separately published over a period of five years, but they were intended, and described on the title pages, as parts of one work. They were all published by Smith Elder, with the approval of the Lords Commissioners of the Treasury, some of the £1,000 given for the publication of the results of the voyage going towards the cost of at least the first part. Darwin notes, in May 1842, that the cost of Coral reefs was £130-140 and that 'the government money has gone much quicker than I thought'. By that date there were only two parts of the Zoology of the Beagle still to come out. Smith Elder also published the important later editions."" (Freeman)Freeman 318.
Torino, Tipografico-Editrice Torinese, (1872). Large8vo. In publisher's original full green cloth. Embossed title with gilt lettering to spine and front board. Corners of binding bumped and lower part of back hindge with a small tear. An overall very fine and clean copy. (2), 464 pp.
First Italian translation of Darwin's Journal of researches, now known as Voyage of the Beagle, being his first published book. As Darwin later recalled in his autobiography 'The voyage of the Beagle has been by far the most important event in my life and has determined my whole career'. ""On its first appearance in its own right, also in 1839, it was called Journal of researches into the geology and natural history etc. The second edition, of 1845, transposes 'geology' and 'natural history' to read Journal of researches into the natural history and geology etc., and the spine title is Naturalist's voyage. The final definitive text of 1860 has the same wording on the title page, but the spine readsNaturalist's voyage round the world, and the fourteenth thousand of 1879 places A naturalist's voyage on the title page. The voyage of the Beagle first appears as a title in the Harmsworth Library edition of 1905. It is a bad title: she was only a floating home for Darwin, on which, in spite of good companionship, he was cramped and miserably sea-sick"" whilst the book is almost entirely about his expeditions on land."" (Freeman)The first edition appeared in German in 1844, at the instigation of Baron von Humboldt, and the second in Danish, French, German, Italian, Russian and Swedish, in Darwin's lifetimeFreeman 211