Paléontologie Française. Description zoologiques et géologiques de tous les animaux mollusques et rayonnés fossiles de France avec les figures de toutes les espèces, lithographiées d'àpres nature, par M. J. Delarue. Terrains Crétacés. Tome troisième [contenant Quatrième classe. Lamellibranches]. Texte.

Paris, Chez l'auteur; [and] Arthus Bertrand, 1843. 8vo (22.9 x 14.3 cm). Half-title, title page, 752 pp. Original boards with printed title mounted (text). Contemporary grained half morocco over marbled boards. Spine with five raised bands and gilt title. Marbled endpapers. = The most important contribution to the knowledge of the Cretaceous molluscs, in particular bivalves, of western Europe, with the descriptions and illustrations of numerous new and poorly known species, often based on well-preserved specimens. This work is very rarely found complete. This is the complete text. The series, Paléontologie Française, was started by d'Orbigny - who also wrote the not-included parts on gastropods and bivalves - and after d'Orbigny's death in 1855 continued until 1894, treating various other groups of fossils, also from Tertiary and older strata, and by different authors. But this seldom-seen early part on extremely diverse faunas was entirely written by d'Orbigny himself. Inscribed on first blank recto, in light pencil, by the palaeontologist Jeffrey D. Stilwell. Nearly spotless. A very good copy. Cat. BM(NH) 3 p. 1474; Caprotti, p. 207; Nissen ZBI, 4739.