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MAWE, JOHN. A Treatise on Diamonds and Precious Stones. 3 hand-colored engraved plates including frontispiece. 8vo, contemporary diced russian,
MAWE, JOHN. A Treatise on Diamonds and Precious Stones. 3 hand-colored engraved plates including frontispiece. 8vo, contemporary diced russian, quite worn, spine defective; offsetting to facing pages from colored illustrations, especially plate 3 (the table of stone colors). London, 1813
- Notes: first edition of one of the earliest original works in the English language by a practical mineralogist and gemologist. In it, he treats numerous rare gems, including a Brazilian topaz that the author considered the best in England. Mawe was given permission by Brazilian prince regent, Dom Pedro, to visit the diamond mines and was given access to government archives; his is considered to be the first witnessed account of Brazil's diamonds. "One of the first general treatises on gemstones in the English language that is refreshingly free of fantasy and superstition"--Sinkankas 4283.
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