Iacobi Christiani Schaefferi S.S. Theologiae et Philosophiae Doctoris ... Elementa Ornithologica

Elementa Ornithologica by Jacob Christian Schäffer (1718-1790), a German philosophy and divinity teacher, botanist, mycologist, entomologist, ornithologist, and inventor, is a detailed, beautifully illustrated ornithological study in which birds are divided into two classes: Nudipedes (those with naked legs) and Plumipedes (with feathered legs). Schäffer, who created this classification system, also developed and named colors on charts that would imitate as closely as possible the natural hues found in plants and animals. As an inventor, Schäffer experimented with electricity and optics, the manufacture lenses and paper, and having made one of the first washing machines. This second and rare edition (less than six held by American institutions) includes 70 hand-colored engravings, illustrated by J.J. Rotermundt.