Books

1868. St. Petersburg, 1868 [but in fact 1867-1869]. 8vo. In contemporary half calf with renewed spine. Inner hindges with repairs and boards with soiling and a few marks and holes to volume 1. Light foxing throughout, primarily affecting margins and plates. Overall a good copy. IV, 443, (1): ill; V.2: 462, (I)-VI pp. The very first publication of Darwin's 'Variation under Domestication' in any language. The title-page states 1868 but they two volumes were in fact published, respectively in November 1867 and 1869."In August, 1867, Darwin wrote to Lyell that he was visited by a young Russian "who is translating my new book into Russian.". The book was the 'Variation of Animals and Plants under Domestication', and the youngRussian was Vladimir Kovalevsky, who subsequently became a well-known evolutionary palaeontologist. At that time the 'Variation' was not yet published, and it seems most probably that the translation was made from a set of proofs given to Kovalevsky by Darwin.…

The Variation of Animals and Plants under Domestication is a book by Charles Darwin that presents his observations on the descendency and variations in animals and plants during the domestication process, highlighting the role of artificial selection.