‎LABRAM, J. D. / IMHOFF, Ludwig: ‎
‎Die Schweizerischen Käfergattungen in Abbildungen nach der Natur. 34 parts in 34 orig.-wrappers.‎

‎Basel, Bahnmaier’s Buchhandkung (G. Detloff), 1836-1842, sm. 8vo, (18.1 x 11.8 cm). Title page and index page (included in 20th part), folded blank; 136 hand-coloured lithographed plates with 136 explanatory text leaves. 34 original printed wrappers.‎

Reference : 136295aaf

‎Important early work on the beetles of Switzerland, with several new species. The plates are lithographed and finely hand-coloured, very much in the style of Jacob Sturm, with the same attention to minute details. Jonas David Labram (1785-1852) was a Swiss botanist and botanical artist and lithographer at Basel. Labram is better known for the illustrations he made for Johannes Jacob Hegetschweiler's Sammlung von Schweizer Pflanzen und Sammlung von Zierpflanzen. His own major botanical contribution is Giftpflanzen der Schweiz. His entomological work includes other publications on Swiss beetles, and on butterflies. Labram's co-author, the Swiss entomologist Ludwig Imhoff (1801-1868) also published on African ants and other Hymenoptera. This is their second most important joint effort, published seven years after their Insecten der Schweiz. Several wrappers contain an explanatory text regarding the publication of this work, including the notion that 20 parts would form one volume. Indeed, the 20th issue contains a volume title and index. Horn-Schenkling stated a total of 34 parts, each with 4 plates, as in this copy, for a total of 211 (sic) plates, which is a peculiar error for 136 plates !. "Complete" [i.e., all published] copies are extremely rare with perhaps no more than one copy sold in the last few decades. scattered foxing, mainly to the explanatory leaves - the plates much cleaner. Especially rare with the original wrappers, and title and index, as in this one. Horn-Schenkling, 12584; Nissen ZBI, 2337. Image disp.‎