Technology

"On the Origin of Species" had a total of six editions. The rarest being the first edition with only 1250 copies printed, and 1100 were sold. Mudie's Lending Library had purchased 500 copies of these books to be lent to subscribers or purchased (Dizikes 2009). In 2019, an anonymous bidder bought a first edition copy for £162,500 (approx. $252, 300 CAD) at auction in Edinburgh, Scotland (McNamara 2019). Later editions have had many more copies attributed to them. The reason for the low number of copies is because there is only a 2-month difference between the publication of the first and second editions.

The copy used in this exhibit was presented on the “Book” page and it is a first edition copy published by John Murray in November 1859. On the fourth page of the book, the fine print immediately before the “Contents” pages states “Printed by W. Clowes and Sons, Stamford Street, and Charing Cross” (Darwin 1859). W. Clowes and Sons is a British printing company founded by William Clowes in 1803 and by 1843 it had become one of the largest printing companies in the world with 24 Applegath and Cower steam presses. These steam presses were developed in 1843 and displayed at the Great Exhibition in May 1851 (Smiles and Clowes 1997). The Applegarth and Cower vertical presses could print up to 5000 copies an hour. This press had a central drum held vertically and 8 vertical cylinders around it connected by toothed wheels. The type on the drum would be inked 8 times per revolution by 8 ink rollers and each cylinder would receive sheets from a horizontal feed-board which are passed sideways and cause an impression on one side of each sheet of paper. The ink is supplied from above and as the revolving drum passes the ductor-roller it supplies the coating of ink and the ink rollers would get inked and gives the types a coating of ink. The drum would then bring the inked type into contact with the paper from the cylinders and the paper is printed (Bradbury 1866). It is unknown if this is the exact machine used for the typing process since in 1853 the Hoe rotary press was introduced and prints up to 20,000 sheets per hour using cylinders on the horizontal axis (Taunton 2014). Data stating if the W. Clowes and Sons company adopted the new technology or continued to use the Applegarth and Cower vertical presses for the printing of this book in 1859 is unknown.

The bookbinding would constitute folding, flattening and placing them into quires to be sewn together. Then glue the paper to the spine of the book. The first edition all had a green diagonal-wave-grain cloth covering the hardcover of the book. The front and back of the book cover were blocked in blind as decoration. Blind blocking is the process of stamping a design into the cover with heat and pressure using a press in which the block is heated and the lever is pulled leaving a design. The spine of the book is decorated and lettered in gilt which can be done by coating the surface with gesso, dried, then rewet with rabbit-skin glue and water, then placing a gold leaf over the design, allowed to dry again, then finally burnishing by a polished rock.

In 1852 the new printing methods reduced the price of reprints to one shilling, and later reprints became even cheaper (Altick 1954). Book publishing in the late 19th century became increasingly easier to make a start due to reduced prices and the long-term credit that printing companies granted. In Darwin’s lifetime, "On the Origin of Species" was translated into 11 languages making the information more accessible to countries around the world (Kaiser 2014). The book requires the audience to be literate and capable of attaining a copy of the book. In the 19th century, to attain a copy of the book the individual would either get it from the library or purchase the book. Therefore, the accessibility of the work is dependant on one’s community.

The book’s production on paper has affected the book’s availability as they are experiencing foxing which is a form of age-related damage due to localized cellulose oxidation which can be caused by metals and microorganisms. As previously mentioned, first edition copies are very expensive and need to be preserved using preservation methods. Therefore, the paper has affected the accessibility of the data from the physical book. However, currently, the book is completely digitized with high-resolution images for every page and the cover. The contents of the book are also available online in HTML (https://www.gutenberg.org/files/1228/1228-h/1228-h.htm). Anyone with access to the internet through a device could access the book very easily. The technology of the book did not cause its endangerment. The endangerment of the book is due to the ideas the book presented.