Bidspirit auction | João Baptista da SIlva Lopes

João Baptista da SIlva Lopes - MEMORIA SOBRE A REFORMA dos Pezos e Medidas em Portugal segundo o Systema Metrico-Decimal - João Baptista da Silva Lopes. Published in 1849 in Lisbon, at the Imprensa Nacional, this unusual and important work by João Baptista da Silva Lopes constitutes a meticulous record of the entire deliberative process that, in the first half of the 19th century, culminated in the national metrological reform. With a format of 230 mm and a pagination of 150, [2], 70, [2] pages, the text details the history of political decisions and the practical processes of applying the new method in the various municipalities and provinces of the country, including tables and comparative statistical data on the old and new measures. The copy is bound in an elegant full period mottled leather binding, with corners and large central triangles in marbled paper of classic pattern (shades of green, yellow and brown). The spine, with raised bands, features exquisite work of gilded floral tooling on the boxes and leather labels with the author's name and title engraved in gold. In terms of preservation, the binding is extremely solid and the text block is perfectly firm and clean, exhibiting only a natural and very slight stain of old dampness on the lower margin of the title page, without any detriment to the text. This is an unusual and highly sought-after copy, of great interest to the history of science, public administration and the Portuguese economy.