Collection of 13 offprints

1901-1911. FIRST EDITIONS. Bound together in black buckram. Ex-library (Scripps Institution for Biological Research). Item #13811

A compendium of Montgomery’s papers on cytology and zoology. Montgomery (1873-1912) was a distinguished professor and chairman of the Department of Zoology at the University of Pennsylvania. Although he only lived to age thirty-nine, he was a prolific researcher, and produced more than eighty papers between 1894 and his death in 1912. His work focused on cytology, morphology, and taxonomy, though he also made contributions to the fields of phylogeny, animal distribution, and ecology.

DSB describes his conclusions from the celebrated work “A study of the chromosomes of the germ cells of metazoa” (included in this collection) as “contain[ing] the essentials of the chromosomal basis of biparental inheritance . . . announced just prior to the rediscovery of Mendel’s laws of segregation and recombination. Despite what seems in retrospect an unimaginative and narrow interpretation, it appears undeniable that the speed with which Sutton, Wilson, and others subsequently established the correlation with the rediscovered laws of inheritance was due in large measure to Montgomery’s masterly analysis – not the least aspect of which was its clarifying terminology.”

The papers herein contain other considerable contributions. In addition to Montgomery’s work which was basic to the theory of sex determination, other papers “brought order to the rather chaotic views of the nucleolus by clearly distinguishing “chromatin nucleoli’ (among which were the heterochromosomes) from the plasmosomes, or true nucleoli. Noteworthy in his 1911 paper was Montgomery’s confirmation of observations on fixed material by examining cells teased out in a physiological fluid. This degree of sophistication was not attained by other cytologists for nearly two decades” (DSB).

DAB, XII, pp. 99-100; DSB, IX, pp. 495-497; Hughes, A History of Cytology, p. 84

Papers include:
“A study of the chromosomes of the germ cells of metazoa.” Offprint from the American Philosophical Society, January 1901. 4to. pp. 154-236. With 4 plates. Original printed front wrapper signed with “author’s compliments.”

“Peculiarities of the terrestrial larva of the urodelous batrachian, plethodon cinereus green.” Offprint from the Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, August 1901. 8vo. pp. 503-508. With 1 plate. Original printed front wrapper signed with “author’s compliments.”

“Studies on the habits of spiders, particularly those of the mating period.” Offprint from the Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, January 1903. 8vo. pp. 59-149. With 2 plates. Original printed front wrapper.

“On the morphology of the rotatorian family flosculariidæ.” Offprint from the Proceedings of The Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, May 1903. 8vo. pp. 363-395. With 4 plates (3 folding). Original printed front wrapper.

“Supplementary notes on spiders of the genera lycosa, pardosa, pirata and dolomedes from the Northeastern United States.” Offprint from the Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, October 1903. 8vo. pp. 645-655. With 1 plate. Original printed front wrapper.

“On floscularia conklini, nov. spec., with a key for the identification of the known species of the genus.” Offprint from the Biological Bulletin, September 1903. 8vo. pp. 233-238. Sewn as issued.

“The main facts in regard to the cellular basis of heredity.” Offprint from Proceedings American Philosophical Society, read January 1904. 8vo. pp. 5-14. Sewn as issued.

“Descriptions of North American araneæ of the families lycosidæ and pisauridæ. Offprint from the Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, March 1904. 8vo. pp. 261-323. With 3 plates. Original printed front wrapper.

“Chromosomes in the spermatogenesis of the hemiptera heteroptera.” Offprint from the Transactions of the American Philosophical Society, 1906. 4to. pp. 97-173. With 5 plates. Original printed front wrapper.

“The development of theridium, an aranead, up to the stage of reversion. Offprint from the Journal of Morphology, July 1909. 8vo. pp. 297-352, with 8 plates. Original printed front wrapper; pp. 350-352 and 8 plates misbound after next offprint, “Differentiation of the human cells of sertoli.” 2 misbound plates from “On the dimegalous sperm. . . .” directly follow “The development of theridium. . . .”

“Differentiation of the human cells of sertoli.” Offprint from the Biological Bulletin, November 1911. 8vo. pp. 367-388. With 5 plates.

“Are particular chromosomes sex determinants?” Offprint from the Biological Bulletin. June, 1910. 8vo. 17 pp.

“On the dimegalous sperm and chromosomal variation of euschistus, with reference to chromosomal continuity.” Leipzig: Wilhelm Engelmann, 1910. Offprint from Archiv für Zellforschung. 8vo. [i], pp. 120-145. With 1 text figure and 2 plates. Original printed front wrapper; 2 plates are misbound and follow “The development of theridium. . . .”.

Price: $5,500.00

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