(1) A Descriptive Catalogue of the Rock Specimens… / (2) A Catalogue of the Mineral Collections… / (3) A Descriptive Catalogue of the Geological, Mining, and Metellurgical Models… / (4) A Catalogue of the Collection of Fossils in the Museum of Practical G

Description:

(1) 3rd edition, 1862, pp. xvi, 291; (2) 1864, pp. viii, 190; (3) 1865, pp. viii, 199; (4) 1865, pp. lxxix, 381.

The Museum of Practical Geology was formed from collections built up by the Geological Survey (founded in 1835) in the course of its work, illustrating the application of geology to industry. A museum was first opened to the public in Whitehall in 1837, with contents largely of a practical nature: building and ornamental stones, manufactured products, and even artworks such as statues, pottery, etc. The collections soon outgrew their premises, and new premises were built to house them in Jermyn Street, Picadilly, which opened in 1851. The museum promoted geology's relationship to arts and industry as well as building up a large collection of fossils, rocks and minerals. A number of catalogues were published to act as guides to the various collections and early examples are now scarce.

Thomas Henry Huxley (1825-1895), English biologist and best know as advocate of Charles Darwin's theory of evolution, is co-author of the Catalogue to the Collection of Fossils. In 1854 he became Professor of natural history at the Royal School of Mines, a chair he occupied for 31 years, and in 1855, naturalist to the British Geological Survey.

In the 1930s the Geological Survey moved to South Kensington, and again in 1980 to Keyworth, following which its Geological Museum was amalgamated with the Natural History Museum's collections.

Condition

4 works bound in 1 volume, 8vo, half-leather, joints + corners rubbed/scuffed; binding broken between pp. iv-v of first catalogue, first two leaves separating along inner margin; occasional foxing. Ex-lib.: two small ink stamps to title-page of first catalogue, typewritten contents list pasted to front endpaper.