From the scarce 3rd edition of the 1797 Encyclopedia Britannica
A scarce original Andrew Bell copper plate engraving over 200 years old
Originally bound into a volume of The Encyclopedia Britannica.
The pages measure approximately
10 1/2 inches x 8 inches
The plate is a genuine 18th century original and produced on fine quality laid paper and free from any text on the reverse.
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Andrew Bell (1726–1809) was a Scottish engraver and printer, who co-founded Encyclopædia Britannica with Colin Macfarquhar.
Bell was a colourful Scot. He height was 4 foot 6; he had crooked legs and an enormous nose that he would sometimes augment with a paper-mache version whenever anyone stared at his natural nose. Bell began work as an engraver of crests, names, etc. on dog collars. Despite his small stature, he deliberately rode the tallest horse available in Edinburgh, dismounting by a ladder to the cheers of onlookers.
Bell produced almost all of the copperplate engravings for the 1st-4th editions of the Britannica: 160 for the 1st, 340 for the 2nd, 542 for the 3rd, and 531 for the 4th. For the 1st edition, Bell produced three full pages of anatomically accurate depictions of dissected female pelvises and of foetuses in wombs for the midwifery article; these illustrations shocked King George III who commanded that the pages be ripped from every copy.
After Macfarquhar died in 1793, Bell bought out his heirs and became sole owner of the Britannica until his own death in 1809
1797-3rd Edition Vol 3b