Newton's Principia. The Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy, by Sir Isaac Newton; Translated into English by Andrew Motte. To Which is Added Newton's System of the World; With a Portrait Taken from the Bust in the Royal Observatory at Greenwich. First American Edition, Carefully Revised and Corrected, With a Life of the Author, by N. W. Chittenden, M. A., &c

Newton, Isaac; Andrew Motte [Translator]; N. W. Chittenden [Biographer]

Published by Daniel Adee, New York, 1848

About this Item

First American edition, first printing with date 1848 on title page and publisher's address listed as 107 Fulton-Street. 4, v-viii, 9-581 pp., illustrated with engraved frontispiece protected by tissue guard. Recently bound in maroon buckram, title label to spine. Very Good+ with light wear to covers and slight bumping to lower corners; title label beginning to lift at one corner. Band of paper residue to front free endpaper. Light toning and moderate foxing to textblock edges and contents, dampstain to outer textblock edge and outer margin throughout. Cohen pp. 347-352. The first American edition of the foundational physics text, first published in Latin in 1687. Andrew Motte's 1729 translation was reprinted in 1803 and 1819 in Britain, but subsequent 19th century editions were printed only in the United States and Germany. The New York-based publisher Daniel Adee deposited a copyright for the Principia in 1846, then printed five issues between 1848 and 1850. A contemporary notice in the Scientific American declared: "For a long time the 'Principia' was kept far out of the reach of the mere English Scholar, as if Newton had written it exclusively for the classical student and philosopher. It was a scarce book when printed in the Latin language; it is now, thanks to the spirit of an American publisher, printed in our mother tongue, and should find a place in every family library.".

Seller Inventory # 140949208

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Newton's Principia. The Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy, by Sir Isaac Newton; Translated into English by Andrew Motte. To Which is Added Newton's System of the World; With a Portrait Taken from the Bust in the Royal Observatory at Greenwich. First American Edition, Carefully Revised and Corrected, With a Life of the Author, by N. W. Chittenden, M. A., &c
• Publisher: Daniel Adee, New York
• Publication Date: 1848
• Edition: First American Edition.
• Condition: Very Good+
• Seller catalogs:
  • Signed
  • Physics