Atlas of the Tertiary History of the Grand Canyon
Magically Magnetic Inc.
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Atlas of the Tertiary History of the Grand Canyon by Capt. Clarence E. Dutton USA for the Department of the Interior and the Geological Survey, illustrated by William Holmes and Thomas Moran.
This 1882 folio measures 19-7/8” by 17-1/2”. It is part of a two-volume set written by Capt
Clarence E. Dutton and illustrated by two of the finest scientific illustrators of the time.
One of the two books in the set was the text while this volume is the illustrative companion.
It contains 42 plates, plans and maps, 2 chromolithographed views by Sinclair after Holmes,
17 wood engravings of views, 4 Heliotype plates, with 10 double page spreads that adorn this
wonderful book. The book is printed by Julius Bien and is considered by many as the one of
the greatest publications of a scientific expedition of the American west.
William Holmes and Thomas Moran are unsurpassed as illustrators. Holmes’ view from Point Sublime in the Kaibab if joined end to end, would form a single panoramic view with an image area measuring approximately 17 x 90 inches. Other included items are wonderful topographical maps of the Grand Canyon area as well as illustrations meant to form continuous panoramic vistas. You will see that these two artists could produce a splendid picture of the canyons that could never be duplicated by photographic means. The way they use light and shadows and the strength of pen and ink as well as light color washes to sculpt the terrain are not possible any other way. There are drawings in this collection that tell more about the hills, canyons and the rock formations than any printed word could ever convey. A book like this could never be published today. A government book like this would never use such splendid illustrators today. The cost would be overwhelming. This is a book that will definitely hold its value.
The condition of the book can be seen in the accompanying photos. The cover is original and
shows the marks of being well used and enjoyed for over one hundred years. Usually what is done
with these books is that the book seller collect a copy of the sister text volume of the set
and then takes both of the books to an expert restorer to have them both repaired and rebound
with matching beautiful leather covers. I have done nothing with this book and keep it in the
original cover to retain the highest value. It waits a rejoining with the text copy to be
recovered or kept as is for the future generations to enjoy.
Here are links to a sister copy from the same original printing. These links take you to PDF
documents of photographs taken by a professional photographer of a similar book to mine. You will need
Adobe Acrobat Reader to view the documents
The pictures are of the pages in this other book, not
mine. I show them with permission of the owner, Mr. Robert Ribokas and Scott C. Carter, President
of Digital Data Services, Inc. and the United States Geological Survey in Denver, Colorado. Their
photos were so well done that I wanted to show them as they do the work justice.
Document 1
Document 2
Document 3
Document 4
Document 5
Document 6
Document 7
My copy has been in my family for quite a long time. My father, Mr. William S. Lytle was the head of the PA state Geological Survey and before that worked for his father on their family oil leases drilling for oil in the Titusville PA area before the Second World War. His interest in geology was present from the beginning. When my father died, he left the book to me. I have always loved the illustrations in the book and they might have been instrumental in my deciding to become an artist. Now I feel that the book needs to be cared for better than I can and seen by the rest of the world.
Please call with any questions. 724-352-3322 8am till 4pm, eastern time, Monday through Friday. Ask for David Lytle
Visit my website at www.lyt.com to see my inventive
photo framing and display products.
Thank you for your interest in my book.