Les eaux souterraines aux epoques anciennes: role qui leur revient dans l'origine et les modifications de la substance de l'écorce terrestre

Quarter red leather 8vo, 443pp. Copiously illustrated with plates (some color) and generous in-text illustrations. A Good copy with rubbing to boards and dramatic erosion to the back cover in a geometric shape that pleasantly echoes Figure 9 in the text. A late work by the eminent French geologist Gabriel-Auguste Daubrée (1814-1898), whose writings extended from bog-iron ore to volcanic eruptions. He noted the effects of thermal waters and underground pressure systems in creating geological disruptions, like earthquakes, and his extensive research and collecting of meteorites led to considerations of extraterrestrial activity. He served as director of the École des Mines and the president of the French Academy of Sciences.

This copy comes from the library of O. E. Meinzer (1876-1948), an American hydrogeologist who built on Daubrée’s work. In 1923 he published “The occurrence of ground water in the United States with a discussion of principles,” and was ordained the "father of modern groundwater hydrology" in Hydrogeology Journal. He was awarded the William Bowie Medal in 1943 and his namesake research prize is the highest honor awarded by the US Geological Service today.