Principles of Geology: being an Inquiry how far the former Changes of the Earth's Surface are referable to Causes now in Operation. The Fifth Edition

GEOLOGICAL CLASSIC ATTRACTIVELY BOUND

4 vols. 12mo. xx, 462; [4], 442; [4], 447, [1]; [4]. 448pp., 11 plates (including 8 folding of which 2 are hand-coloured), 6 maps (including 4 folding and 3 hand coloured), nuerous wood-engraved text figures, contemporary Continental (probably German) half dark green morocco, flat spines with broad richly gilt tooled bands at head and foot, pink (paper?) title labels gilt placed just above centrally on the spines, remaining areas of the spines with an all-over decorative lattice pattern in blind, green morocco tips to board corners, green marbled sides, front joint of vol. 4 cracked but tight, neat pencil underlining (removable) in the early sections of vol. 1, spines a little faded, else a nice copy in an attractive and unusual binding.

Vol. 1 inscribed at upper margin of title page "Geo. F. Colley/ Paris/ 1838".

Lyell had first published his seminal Principles of Geology in 3 vols. over the years 1830 to 1833. "Besides establishing a new era in geology, the Principles became a life work fro Lyell. He continued to revise it and brought it out in twelve successive editions. .. The second edition consisted of a corrected version of the first and second volumes, published in May 1832 and January 1833 respectively, before the appearance of the third volume. In May 1834 he published a new edition of the whole work, called the third edition, in four small volumes, dividing the material of the first edition into four books but omitting Deshayes's tables of Tertiary shells. While continuing to revise and add to his text, Lydell retained the format of four small volumes, for the fourth edition, which appeared in June 1835, and the fifth edition, which appeared in March 1837" [Dictionary Scientific Biography]. In later editions Lyell transferred much material from the Principles into his Elements of Geology, first published in 1838, and that established the plan of the book until the 9th edition of 1853. For the 10th edition of 1865-8 he made a major revision to conform to Darwin's Origin of Species.
Hon. George Francis Pomeroy (George Francis Colley from 1830) of Ferney, Stillorgan, Co. Dublin gained the rank of Commander in the Royal Navy.