Regensburg, Emanuel Adam Weiss, 1755. 8vo (22.7 x 18.7 cm). Title page, [iv], 54 pp.; three originally hand-coloured engraved plates. Contemporary marbled wrappers.

The seldom-seen first edition (second: 1764) of this beautifully illustrated work, with fine, original colouring, by the German naturalist Jacob (or Jakob) Christian Schaeffer (or Schäffer) (1718-1790) who had a keen interest in the zoology of the region around Regensburg, in Germany. Weak damp stain to the top margin of a few text leaves, otherwise a clean, wide-margined copy. Rare in this state. Nissen ZBI, 3623.