TELLIAMED OR CONVERSATIONS BETWEEN AN INDIAN PHILOSOPHER AND A FRENCH MISSIONARY ON THE RECESSION OF THE SEA, THE FORMATION OF THE EARTH, THE ORIGIN OF MAN, &C. (TELLIAMED OU ENTRETIENS D'UN PHILOSOPHE INDIEN AVEC UN MISSIONNAIRE FRANCOIS SUR LA DIMINUTION DE LA MER, LA FORMATION DE LA TERRE, L'ORIGINE DE L'HOMME, &C.)
Book Details + Condition: L'Honore and Fils (Amsterdam, Netherlands). First Edition, 1748. Hardcover, beautifully bound in linen with leather binding; marbled endpapers. 411 pages. Written in the original French language. The work for the first time presents theories on cosmic and biological evolution, in the form of a dialogue between the protagonist Telliamed and a French missionary. Because these materialist and evolutionary ideas contradicted orthodox church dogma, de Maillet initially circulated the work as an unpublished manuscript in the 1720s. It was eventually published posthumously, heavily edited to soften its controversial scientific stance, and later translated into English in 1750. Today, it is recognized as a visionary precursor to evolutionary theory, predating Charles Darwin by over a century. Some of the theories include:
- The Earth was once entirely covered by a massive, chaotic ocean. Over billions of years, this sea level continually dropped, gradually exposing the continents.
- The universe is made of vast, endless cycles of stars and planetary systems. When stars burn out, they explode, and the resulting debris forms new planets over vast eons.
- All life originated in the primordial ocean. Organisms began as simple seeds or plants, which adapted to the changing environmental conditions as the sea receded.
- The book contains remarkable proto-evolutionary theories. Maillet argued that land animals originally evolved from marine creatures. As the seas shrank, fish and marine mammals were forced onto land and into the air, over generations transforming into modern land animals and even humans.
Firm binding; minor shelf wear to boards, with a bit of fading to leather binding; foxing to half-title and corresponding page; occasional (minor) age spotting to pages; interior is clean and free of markings. All books are carefully packed, and shipped in boxes.
