Milestones of Science Books

NEWTON, Isaac.

Philosophiae naturalis principia mathematica. Editio tertia aucta & emendata.

London: Apud Guil. & Joh. Innys, 1726.

3rd Edition. Hardcover. Near Fine. Item #002932

4to (241 x 187 mm). [34], 530, [8] pp., including half-title, title-page printed in red and black, engraved portrait of Newton by George Vertue bound before page one, privilege leaf, dedication leaf, Halley's commendatory verse leaf, ad leaf bound at end; numerous woodcut diagrams and the engraving on p. 506. Contemporary Dutch vellum (soiled and slightly spotted, boards a bit bowed, top corner of front board scuffed), sprinkled edges. Minor occasional spotting internally (a bit stronger to half-title, title, privilege and portrait), occasional light marginal soiling, mainly to top margin, but generally quite bright and crisp. Provenance: illegible signatures front pastedown, half-title and ad leaf verso. All in all a fine and complete copy, rarely found in vellum bindings and completely untouched as here. ----

PMM 161 (describing the first edition); Babson 13; Gray 9; Wallis 9; Todd E3(2); HBS 64483. - The stated third edition. According to W.B.Todd, Bibliography of the Principia, p.855, this is the second impression, determined by the progressive wearing of type fractures and dislocations. The Babson catalogue notes that the license leaf had no assigned signature location, and is found at various places in copies of the regular edition. This edition was the last published during the author's lifetime and is the basis for all subsequent editions. The editor was Henry Pemberton, M.D., F.R.S., and this recension of the text contains a new preface by Newton and a large number of alterations. The most important of these is in the scholium on fluxions, in which Leibnitz had been mentioned by name in the earlier editions. His name is absent here, leading to claims that Newton was avoiding sharing credit for the development of calculus with his Continental rival.

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