Milestones of Science Books

LOHRMANN, Wilhelm Gotthelf.

Mondcharte in 25 Sectionen und 2 Erläuterungstafeln, edited by J.F. Julius Schmidt.

Leipzig: Johann Ambrosius Barth, 1878.

1st Edition. Hardcover. Oblong folio. Very Good. Item #002198

Folio (315 x 263 mm). Dedication, half title, engraved portrait frontispiece, 25 engraved section maps of the moon after W.G. Lohrmann and 2 explanatory plates. Contemporary half leather (rebacked and recornered preserving part of original gilt-lettered spine, front free endpaper starting). Some light mostly marginal foxing throughout, light waterstain in lower margin of most maps, title page and portrait a bit spotted. Provenance: Dr. R. Engelmann (astronomer, inscription dated August 1878 on endpaper) - some annotations in pencil (possibly by R. Engelmann) - British Astronomical Association (stamps on endpaper and title). ----

Ashworth, The face of the moon, Linda Hall, 23 (1892 reissue only) - VERY RARE FIRST EDITION. Lohrmann completed the drawings for all 25 sections of his moon map by 1836, but he died before he could secure their publication. In 1851 Lohrmann's publisher, J.A. Barth, asked Julius Schmidt if he would edit the remaining sections. Schmidt agreed, but it took him almost 30 years to complete the task. The first four sections, which had been published in 1824, were re-engraved, and, as they are virtually identical to the originals, we may conclude that the remaining sections are faithful to Lohrmann's intentions. Schmidt's edition of Lohrmann's map was finally published in 1878" (Ashworth). "One of the most attractive features of Lohrmann's maps is the use of multiple levels of shading to indicate light and dark areas of the moon ... Schmidt did depart from Lohrmann in the nomenclature used on the map. Many additional features had been named in the fifty years since Lohrmann worked, by Mädler, Schmidt, and Birt, and Schmidt thought it proper to incorporate these changes" (Ashworth). "Here we find, for the first time in lunar maps, the use of hachures to indicate the length and steepness of the slopes of the various features. This technique had ... the drawbacks of being extremely labour intensive and, ideally, requiring an artistic engraver who was sensitive to the telescopic appearance of the lunar surface. Variations in surface reflectivity are indicated by carefully applied stippling. South is up, thus following Schröter's convention" (Whitaker, Mapping and Naming the Moon p. 116). - Visit our website to see more images!

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