On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life. Second edition (1860)

London : printed by W. Clowes and Sons for John Murray, 1860. Second edition, second state (fifth thousand). Octavo, original green cloth by Edmonds & Remnants, London retaining their ticket on lower pastedown, boards blocked in blind with rules enclosing foliate designs and central panel, spine gilt (recased with original spine laid down, repairs to head and foot of spine, upper joint cracked, light bumping to corners), brown endpapers with contemporary gift inscription dated 1860, pp. ix, [1 – instructions to the binder], 502, 32 (publisher’s catalogue dated January 1860), folding lithographic plate by William West after Darwin, occasional light foxing, lower hinge a little cracked, small pen note on p. 1 mentioning the publication date of the first printing, a good copy of the second edition.

The first edition of 1859, a great rarity, is described in Freeman as “… the most important biological work ever written.”; Dibner, “… the most important single work in science.”; Printing & the Mind of Man, “… revolutionized our methods of thinking and our outlook on the natural order of things. The recognition that constant change is the order of the universe had been finally established and a vast step forward in the uniformity of nature had been taken”.

The second edition was issued in two states, the difference being the addition of the text ‘Fifth thousand’ to the title page. Three thousand copies of the second edition were printed, three months after the first edition of 1250 copies sold out in a single day. The combined number of copies which had been printed by January 1860 was now 4250, hence, entering the fifth thousand.

Freeman 376.