Geological notes made during a survey of the east and west coasts of S. America, in the years 1832, 1833, 1834 and 1835. WITH: Observations of proofs of recent elevation on the coast of Chili, made during the survey of His Majesty’s ship Beagle. WITH: A sketch of the deposits containing extinct Mammalia in the neighbourhood of the Plata. WITH: On certain areas of elevation and subsidence in the Pacific and Indian oceans, as deduced from the study of coral formations. WITH: On the Formation of Mould. WITH: On the connexion of certain volcanic phaenomena, and on the formation of mountain-chains and volcanos, as the effects of continental elevations

London: R. and J.E. Taylor, 1838. first edition. contemporary half-cloth. Very Good. DARWIN’S FIRST SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATION; WITH OTHER PAPERS ESTABLISHING HIS REPUTATION AS A GEOLOGIST ON THE BEAGLE AND REPORTING EVIDENCE THAT WOULD UNDERGIRD HIS LATER THEORY OF NATURAL SELECTION. Even before Darwin returned from his nearly five-year journey as the geologist aboard the Beagle word began to circulate about some of his discoveries. The first of Darwin’s reports in this collection, “Geological notes made during a survey of the east and west coasts of S. America, in the years 1832, 1833, 1834 and 1835” appeared in the Proceedings of the Geological Society of London in the form of notes from the organization’s meeting on November 18, 1835 (Vol II, pp. 210-212). Darwin wouldn’t return to England for nearly a year (on October 2, 1836) so this paper is an account, read by Darwin’s former teacher at Cambridge and mentor Professor Adam Sedgwick, of Darwin’s work taken from a series of letters to Darwin’s other great mentor and professor John Stevens Henslow. (Amusingly, the relatively unknown Darwin is listed as “F. Darwin” in the title.) The “Geological Notes” provide great detail about the land formations and fossils along the western coast of South America.

The next paper in the collection, “Observations of proofs of recent elevation on the coast of Chili, made during the survey of His Majesty’s ship Beagle” was read by Darwin himself at the January 4, 1837 meeting (II, 446-449). This was Darwin’s first scientific paper, and in this paper and the subsequent papers in the journal, his growing understanding of the earth’s formation was becoming clear. Crucially, Darwin’s geology was dynamic, with continents slowly rising and sea basins sinking, and it formed the basis of all his later views. He endorsed Charles Lyell's belief in an earth gradually shaped over countless ages: time enough—as he later grasped—for evolution by natural selection to occur. (In the same issue of the Proceedings – Vol II, No. 48 – it was reported that on November 30, 1836, Darwin was elected a Fellow of the society.)

The subsequent papers in the collection serve to undergird Darwin’s philosophy of geological change, an essential element in all his future work:

–The May 3, 1837 meeting reports Darwin’s paper, “A sketch of the deposits containing extinct Mammalia in the neighbourhood of the Plata” (II, 543-44); the May 31 meeting, “On certain areas of elevation and subsidence in the Pacific and Indian oceans, as deduced from the study of coral formations” (II, 552-4); the November 1 meeting, “On the Formation of Mould” (II, 574-76); and the March 7, 1838 meeting, “On the connexion of certain volcanic phaenomena, and on the formation of mountain-chains and volcanos, as the effects of continental elevations” (II, 654-660).

Note: Although these papers were read to the society starting in 1835, they were not published until this collected volume in 1838. The legendarily rare privately printed and privately distributed (Cambridge Philosophical Society) pamphlet “Extracts from Letters addressed to Professor Henslow” precedes these papers but it was not “published” and was created and distributed without Darwin’s approval – while he was still, in fact, on his Beagle voyage.

Provenance:

–With bookplate in each volume indicating that they were donated to the Woodwardian Museum by Charles Tawney, on behalf of his brother Edward Tawney (1841-1882), the first geology lecturer in Bristol. The Woodwardian Museum was renamed the Sedgwick Museum in 1904. There are a few stamps from both the Woodwardian Museum and the Sedgwick Museum. The Sedwick Museum of Earth Sciences, part of the University of Cambridge, was named after Adam Sedgwick, Darwin's professor and mentor.

–Christie's London, April 8, 2009, lot 15A.

Two volumes of Proceedings of the Geological Society of London (Vol I and II) are included, although all the Darwin papers are in Vol II. London: R. and J.E. Taylor, 1838 (for Vol II). Octavo, early half cloth with hand-written paper spine labels. Very light, minor wear. RARE. (Inventory #: 2919)