HAUKSBEE (Francis). PHYSICO-MECHANICAL EXPERIMENTS ON VARIOU - Lot 71

HAUKSBEE (Francis). PHYSICO-MECHANICAL EXPERIMENTS ON VARIOUS SUBJECTS, containing an Account of several Surprising Phenomena touching Light and Electricity... London, Brugis, 1709, In-4°, [14]-194 pages, mottled calf, cold framed boards, ornate ribbed spine (period binding), ORIGINAL EDITION with 7 plates, 6 of which are fold-outs, and a small engraving inserted between pages 160 and 161. Francis Hausbee (1666-1713) was the first to demonstrate the optical effects produced by the passage of electricity through rarefied air: "RARE FIRST EDITION OF 'ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT EARLY WORKS ON ELECTRICITY" (Duveen, 282). Scattered foxing, light spotting, ex. rebacked, spine expertly rebound. Ex-libris Samuel Blackwell.