"Dictionnaire universel d'histoire naturelle" by Charles-Hen - Lot 34

"Dictionnaire universel d'histoire naturelle" by Charles-Henry d'Orbigny (1806-1876). Between 1841 and 1849, the 13 volumes of text and 3 volumes of plates (totalling around 300 color plates). We present here the vast majority (around 230 plates, 14.5x23.5cm). Very fresh condition, despite a few damp spots, hand-colored steel engravings. Breakdown: 17 fish plates; 16 bird plates; 12 botanical plates (flowers); 16 mollusc plates; 1 cirripede plate; 19 reptile plates; 1 fossil bird plate; approx. 51 insect plates (butterflies etc.); approx. 46 mammal plates (monkey, jackal, lion, horse, antelope, giraffe, dromedary, whale and the now famous pangolin! etc); 7 ethological plates; 10 paleontological plates; 22 botanical plates; 6 zoophyte plates; 3 arachnid plates (spider, scorpion); 4 crustacean plates and 1 myriapod plate. It's worth noting that the quality of the plates maintains the reputation of this work, even if the text (not shown here) is gradually becoming outdated. According to historian Éric Baratay, a specialist in the history of human-animal relations, "in terms of precision, detail and the beauty of the features and colors, these plates are the best produced in the 19th century for the popularization of science". The poses are often more theatrical than natural, which favors precision. For example, the famous pangolin (already mentioned), which has 11 rows of scales on its back and 3 on its tail, turns it in a complicated way, allowing us to count them at the tip. "And without leaving Paris, let's leave for Timbuktu", wrote Victor Hugo (in L'Art d'être grand-père) to his grandchildren about the menagerie at the Jardin des Plantes.