19th Century Celestial Atlas by Elijah H. Burritt, Engr. by W.G. Evans

"Atlas, designed to illustrate the Geography of the Heavens" by Elijah H. Burritt, A.M. New Edition. New York: F.J. Huntington and Co., 1835. Large quarto, 8 engraved plates with sewn printed wrappers. Containing 8 large engraved star-maps, of which all but one are hand-colored and two are two-page-spreads. Engraved by W.G. Evans of New York, under the direction of Burritt. Comprised of: Plate I: A plan of the solar system exhibiting its relative magnitudes and distances. Plate III [facing] Plate II: The visible heavens in March, February, January [facing] December, November, and October Plate V [facing] Plate IV: The visible heavens in September, August, July [facing] June, May, April Plate VII: Southern circumpolar map for each month of the year [facing] Plate VI: Northern circumpolar map for each month of the year Plate VIII: A celestial planisphere, or map of the heavens. The original beige paper wraps feature a woodcut of an astronomer gazing at the stars with a telescope. Toning and foxing to the internal pages with minor edge chipping. Wear, staining, toning and chipping to the paper wraps. Minor insect damage to the wraps. The atlas still retains bright colors and is very attractive.

Elijah H. Burritt (1794-1838) was an American astronomer and mathematician. His textbooks and atlases were created as a low-cost alternative to celestial globes, which were often too expensive for schools. This atlas, available for $1.25 proved to be immensely popular in classrooms up until 1876. This would be the last decorative celestial reference from the 19th century, and even served as an inspiration to H.P. Lovecraft, who noted it in a letter to Maurice Moe in 1915. W.G. Evans of New York also engraved the famous Map of Lewis & Clark's Track Across the Western Portion of North America in 1842.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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