April 2012 Auction Ends Monday, April 30th, 5pm Pacific
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 4/30/2012
English paleontologist Richard Owen autograph letter signed. In the letter, datelined British Museum, 2 September 1857, Darwin's rival communicates his latest findings on the anatomical disparity between two species of vulture. The factual text is enhanced with hand-drawn illustrations of bird skulls. He writes to a colleague: ''...We have the skeleton of Helotarsus ecaudatus: it has 20 vertebrae between the skull & sacrum...there is also a sacrial rib...The sternum is truncate & slightly concave...In the Polybius braziliensis the sternum has two posterior notches...This difference strikes me as most adverse to any special affinity between the S. American and S. African Vultures in question...Richard Owen''. 2pp. letter on a single sheet measures 7.75'' x 9.75''. Toning and creasing, else near fine.
Paleontologist Richard Owen Writes & Illustrates His Findings -- ''...We have the skeleton of Helotarsus ecaudatus: it has 20 vertebrae between the skull & sacrum...'' -- 1857
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