A manual of chemistry; containing the principal facts of the science

London: John Murray, 1821. Inscribed Dedication Copy Brande, William Thomas (1788-1866). A manual of chemistry; containing the principal facts of the science . . . 3 vols. xvi, 470, [2]; vii, 546, [2]; viii, 350, [106, index]pp. Frontispiece engraving and 3 engraved plates; wood-engraved text illustrations. London: John Murray, 1821. 216 x 133 mm. Quarter morocco, marbled boards in period style. Light toning throughout, some offsetting from plates, small ink-stains on one index page obscuring a few words of text, but very good. The Dedication Copy, Inscribed by Brande to dedicatee Charles Hatchett (1765-1847) on the flyleaf of the first volume: “Charles (truncated) Hatchett Esq. with the Authors very affectionate regards.” Inscribed Dedication Copy of the second edition of Brande’s Manual of Chemistry, greatly enlarged from the one-volume first edition (1819). Brande dedicated this edition to his father-in-law, the British chemist and mineralogist Charles Hatchett, who had introduced Brande the study of chemistry when the latter was in his early teens; Brande’s dedication, dated May 1, 1821, is on the leaf following the title in Vol. I. Hatchett is best known for his discovery in 1801 of the metallic element now known as niobium; Brande’s description of that element in his Manual notes that it “was first discovered by Mr. Hatchett in a mineral from North America” (Vol. II, p. 229). Brande had a long and distinguished career as a chemist and educator. In 1813 he succeeded Humphry Davy as professor of chemistry at the Royal Institution, a post he held until 1852; while at the RI he developed a close relationship with Michael Faraday, who served for some years as Brande’s assistant. Brande also was superintendent of the Royal Mint’s die department from the mid-1820s, and in 1854 became chief officer of the Mint’s coinage department. His Manual of Chemistry went through six editions and was the leading chemistry textbook of its day; he also wrote two well-regarded works on pharmacy, and edited the Dictionary of Science, Literature and Art (1842). `. (Inventory #: 43338)