2 volumes only, 4to (253 x 182 mm). 63 engraved plates; 2 folding tables. (Some minor browning or spotting.) Contemporary mottled calf gilt, red and orange lettering-pieces gilt, edges stained red (joints starting, some light wear). Provenance: J. Fauquer Lamberg? (inscription on a separate sheet tipped in).

FIRST EDITION of the first comprehensive summary of amphibians and reptiles.  Lacépède befriended Buffon, who in 1785 appointed him sub-demonstrator in the Jardin du Roi.  Buffon proposed that he continue his monumental Histoire Naturelle, which he did with this work. The plates after de Sève depict the animals within their natural landscapes. Nissen ZBI 2350.