American Entomology, or Descriptions of the Insects of North America Illustrated by Coloured Figures. Thomas Say. Philadelphia: Samuel Augustus Mitchell, 1824-1828. First edition. 54 hand-colored engraved plates. 3 vols. 8vo. Original publishers rose boards, green paper spines and printed labels. Says pioneering work, the first book on American entomology. His stated intention was "…to exemplify the genera and species of the insects of the United States, by means of colored engravings…" When the first volume was printed it was called "the most beautiful publication of the kind ever issued from an American press" (Weiss & Zeigler, Thomas Say, p.190.) Housed in a custom box. Ex Libris Edward Oliver Essig. American entomologist Edward Oliver Essig (1884-1964) was an American entomologist who specialized in Hemiptera. He served as a professor at the University of California, Berkeley, and was the author of "Injurious and Beneficial Insects of California" (1913), "Insects of Western North America" (1926), "A History of Entomology" (1931), "College Entomology" (1942) and several hundred scientific works on Hemiptera. The Essig Museum of Entomology is named for him. He was also interested in horticulture and wrote "A Check-list of Fuchsias", American Fuchsia Society (1936).
