MAUPERTUIS (Pierre-Louis Moreau de). The Figure of the Earth, determined by the observations of Messieurs de Maupertuis, Clairaut, Camus, Le Monnier, & de l'abbeOuthier, accompanied by M. Celsius, made by order of the king at the polar circle. Paris, De l'Imprimerie royale, 1738. In-8, brown calf, cold fillet, spine decorated, edges speckled with red (contemporary binding).
Original edition, illustrated with a charming copper-engraved vignette depicting the author on a reindeer-drawn sleigh, a map of the arc of the meridian measured at the Arctic Circle and 9 plates of geometric figures.
Account of the mission financed by the Royal Academy of Sciences in 1736-1737 to Lapland, during which Maupertuis (1688-1744) and his companions were to measure the polar arc in order to determine the exact shape of the Earth. It is in this work that we find the first evidence of the flattening of the Earth at the poles.
Angular moulding with a few leaves. Stains on the guards. Restored caps, corners and lower hinge.
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