HUBER (François). - Lot 68

HUBER (François). New observations on bees. Paris, Genève: J. J. Paschoud, 1814. - 2 volumes in-8, 198 x 126: (2 ff.), 362 pp. 2 plates; (2 ff.), 479 pp. (2 ff.), 12 plates. Speckled blond half calf with white parchment corners, smooth spine decorated (contemporary binding). Revised, corrected and considerably enlarged second edition of the first volume, and original edition of the second, all giving the complete version of the observations on bees by Swiss naturalist François Huber (1750-1831). The original edition of the first volume appeared in 1792. The first volume, comprising thirteen letters to his mentor Charles Bonnet between 1789 and 1791, reveals fundamental discoveries. In particular, Huber describes his invention of a "leaf-shaped" beehive, designed to facilitate observation of the combs. He also explores queen fertilization, Pastor Adam Gottlob Schirach's work on rearing future queens with royal jelly, as well as fighting between virgin queens and the slaughter of males in late summer. The second volume, published in 1814 by his son Pierre Huber, abandons the epistolary form for a more systematic approach. Huber demonstrates that bees produce wax by means of abdominal glands, and that pollen serves as food for the larvae. He also describes, with remarkable precision, how bees build their cells and combs. "The "New Observations" (850 pages in all) truly revolutionized knowledge of the natural history of bees at the time. Based on crucial observations and remarkably intelligent experiments, Huber established a number of new facts that are now considered part of the general culture of any beekeeper. [...] Neither Huber's descriptions nor his experiments have been equalled, surpassed or denied in the last two centuries. What an achievement for this scientist, who became blind at the age of 20 and never in his life "saw with his own eyes" the object of his studies! Finally, to carry out his observations, he designed a new hive model, the book hive, which is the origin of the movable-frame hive universally used by modern beekeepers." (Revue suisse d'apiculture, 2024, n° 1-2, page. 32.) Because of his disability, his work was carried out in collaboration with his "servant" François Burnens (1760-1837), and also with his wife Marie-Aimée Lullin (1751-1822). The edition is illustrated with 14 plates giving a precise description of the beehive "en feuilles", the anatomy and architecture of bees. A good copy in contemporary binding.