These hand-colored engravings are cut from the Fullarton edition of Oliver Goldsmith's (1728-1774) A History of the Earth and Animated Nature. The first edition (in eight volumes) appeared in London in 1774. The work sought to draw together virtually all that was known about the planet earth, its plants and animals, and even its human inhabitants described from a biological perspective. Goldsmith had intended to translate Pliny's Natural History, but after reading Buffon, he decided that "the best imitation of the ancients was to write from our own feelings and to imitate nature." Goldsmith's Animated Nature went through over twenty editions into the Victorian era and served as a popular source of information about the natural world. The plates below are taken from a Fullarton edition which is undated but which appears to have been published circa 1860 . The plates from this edition are often in deplorable condition: foxed, grubby, smeared. With a few exceptions, however, the plates below are in excellent condition. The artist is James Stewart ; the engraving is by Lizars, Edinbourgh.
Size: 9.75 x 6.5 inches.
