Sir Joseph Banks - 'Some Circumstances Relative to Merino Sheep, Chiefly Collected from the Spanish Shepherds, who attended those of the Flock of Paular, Lately presented to His Majesty by the Government of Spain; with particulars respecting that Great National Acquisition, and also Respecting the Sheep of the Flock of Negrette, imported from Spain by His Majesty, in the Year 1791' (1809). Bound with two related manuscripts, by William Bowles and Edward Davies, 1810-1811

SAFE/MLMSS 7269 (Safe 1/236)

fonds

1809-1811; bound 1825

430632

0.01 metres of textual material (1 box)

Sir Joseph Banks (1743-1820) held the title Groom of His Majesty's Spanish Flock and was concerned with breeding Spanish merinos for the Royal Flock. He was involved with the first public sale of the breed on 15 August 1804, where John Macarthur purchased extensively for his Camden flock in New South Wales.
Banks' paper, `Some Circumstances Relative to Merino Sheep ...', published in 1809, was written in response to the sudden arrival in Richmond Park of a poor quality flock of 1,500 Spanish merinos from Madrid following the 1808 uprising of the Spanish against Napoleon. (H.B. Carter, Sir Joseph Banks, London, British Museum (Natural History), 1988)
Publications by Banks are extremely rare as he published very little during his lifetime.
Banks' treatise is bound with English and Spanish versions of naturalist William Bowles' (1705-1780) rare work `Tratado sobre el Ganada Merino y las Lanas finas de Espana', written in 1770. The English translation by Edward Davies was published in London in 1811 titled `A Treatise on the Merino Sheep ..'. Davies' translation probably dates from 1810 and was enclosed with a letter, dated 19 March 1810, from Davies to William Lee Antonie of Colworth (1764-1815). Antonie was a Member of Parliament for Great Marlow under George III.
A note by Antonie's nephew and heir, John Lee (1783-1866), traveller, astronomer and antiquarian, records that `These papers were found at Colworth' and `bound 1825.' The volume bears the bookplate of William Lee Antonie.

1809; Sir Joseph Banks, `Some Circumstances Relative to Merino Sheep ...' London: Printed by W. Bulmer and Co. Cleveland-Row, St James's, 1809
Undated; William Bowles, manuscript version of `Tratado sobre el Ganada Merino y las Lanas finas de Espana' originally published 1777.
1810; Edward Davies, manuscript draft translation of Bowles' treatise titled `A Treatise on the Merino Sheep and the fine wools of Spain', published 1811. Includes letter from Davies to William Lee Antonie, MP, of Colworth, 19 March 1810, enclosing copy of Spanish and English versions.
Bound in a volume titled `Merino Sheep'.