The Laws of Contrast of Colour, and their Application to the Arts of Painting, Decoration of Buildings, Mosaic Work, Tapestry and Carpet Weaving, Calico Printing, Dress, Paper Staining, Printing, Illumination, Landscape and Flower Gardening, etc....
London: Routledge, Warnes, and Routledge, 1859. "New Edition" Hardcover. Small octavo. xvi + 238pp. Original green pebbled cloth lettered and embellished in gilt on spine and upper board, title in gilt and red starburst design on upper board, index. Sixteen colour plates with tissue guards, one b&w plate with overlay. The colour plates make this the best edition of this translation of Chevreul's ground-breaking work on the subject of colour first published in English in 1857. This translation was preceded by the Martel translation of 1854 of the French "De la Loi du Contraste simultané des Couleurs" (1839). The author, Michel Eugène Chevreul ( 1786 - 1889) was a French chemist whose researches led to early applications in the fields of art and science. While he is best known for his work with fatty acids (he invented "Margarine"), and colour, he also researched the "magic pendulum", Dowsing rods and table-turning Chevreul is one of 72 notable figures whose names were inscribed on the Eiffel Tower, and he was one of only two of those named who was alive at the time of the unveiling of that monument. Corners bumped, spine ends bruised, points lightly chafed, page edges darkened and a bit uneven, contemporary owner's name in ink on front pastedown and bookshop sticker on rear pastedown, foxing to first and last leaves, pages lightly toned with very light scattered foxing, text block pulled a bit at several signatures but still is quite solidly bound. Overall a solid and unmarked VG + copy complete with all plates. Unusual to find this edition in such nice condition. Item #57952
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