Elements of Geometry and Trigonometry, from the Works of A. M. Legendre: Revised and Adapted to the Course of Mathematical Instruction in the United States

A. M. Legendre and Charles Davies. Elements of Geometry and Trigonometry, from the Works of A. M. Legendre: Revised and Adapted to the Course of Mathematical Instruction in the United States. New York: A. S. Barnes & Co., 1858. Revised edition. Nineteenth-century American mathematics textbook based on the work of French mathematician Adrien-Marie Legendre and revised and adapted by Charles Davies for mathematical instruction in the United States. The volume covers geometry, plane and spherical trigonometry, mensuration, and related mathematical principles. Bound in contemporary full tan leather with black leather spine label lettered in gilt “Davies’ Legendre (Revised Ed.)” and gilt rules to the spine. Binding remains solid. Leather shows substantial age-related rubbing, scratching, staining, and edge wear, with heavily worn corners and wear at the spine ends. A small tear/split is present near the upper front joint, as shown in the photographs. Overall a sound, well-used nineteenth-century schoolbook. Interior remains generally sound with age toning, occasional spotting and signs of handling. Of particular interest is the extensive period student provenance: the front endpaper is beautifully inscribed in cursive “Norman A. Williams, Utica Free Academy, Sept. 5th 1863,” with a later notation indicating completion on December 13, 1864. Another endpaper contains Williams’s handwritten roster headed “Scholars in class when commenced”, followed by a shorter list headed “Those in it when ended.” These contemporary inscriptions provide an unusually evocative record of the book’s actual use in a Civil War-era American classroom. A visually appealing and historically interesting example of a mid-nineteenth-century American mathematics textbook.…