Edward Wilson's NATURE NOTEBOOKS
(price 39.99 pounds)
ISBN 1 873877 70 6by DW.Wilson and CJ.Wilson
Edward Wilson is remembered as the artist of the British Antarctic Expedition of 1910-1912, led by Captain Robert Falcon Scott. The "Terra Nova" sailed via Madeira, South Trinidad, South Africa and Australia, to New Zealand; from where she set sail for the Antarctic on 24 January 1911. During the expedition Wilson studied and drew biological specimens, and made finished watercolours. The expedition reached the South Pole on 17 January 1912 after a journey of nearly a year. On the return journey the expedition hit unseasonably bad weather and Wilson died along with team members Scott and Bowers on 29 March. The specimens, diaries and sketchbooks were recovered by the search party the following Spring.
It is probable that Edward Wilson's place in the history of art is as the last major painter of exploration art, an art form largely created by the fusion of science, cartography and art by William Hodges who had accompanied Captain Cook's second expedition from 1772-75. Hodges' work had been admired by Turner who was in turn admired by Wilson. With the death of Wilson, the major media for recording feats of exploration passed primarily to photography and film and the aesthetic technique and vision was subsumed.
Edward Wilson drew all his life, collecting his drawings into indexed volumes he called his "stock in trade". He used them as the basis for his illustrations of Barrett-Hamilton's "A History of British Mammals", and started to use them for illustrating W. Eagle Clarke's "A History of British Birds", a cancelled publication.
After his death, his wife, Oriana, arranged the notebooks and distributed many
of them amongst the family. Two books - the "Nature Notebooks" were given to his nephew,
Michael Wilson, whose sons have edited this volume. It contains the bulk of Edward Wilson's
non-Antarctic work - from the Notebooks and other sources - reproduced here in chronological
order, showing his development as an artist. There is also a selection of quotations from
the Notebooks' observations and annotations, in keeping with the scrapbook flavour of many
of the pages. Additionally, there is a short biography at the start of each chapter,
concentrating on his scientific and artistic progress, and a selection of the Antarctic
work so the reader can see the continuous artistic and scientific development.
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Edward Wilson's NATURE NOTEBOOKS Special Limited Edition
(price 150.00 pounds)
ISBN 1 873877 71 4Special 150 Limited Edition, numbered and signed boxed leather book.
by DW.Wilson and CJ.Wilson
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Cheltenham in Antarctica
(The life of Edward Wilson)
(price 9.99 pounds)
Dr Edward Adrian Wilson is one of the best known of Cheltenham's native sons and one of the most widely respected naturalists, artists and explorers from the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration. Despite this, remarkably little has been written about him.In this exciting new work, Dr David M. Wilson, his great nephew, and David B. Elder, a local Cheltenham librarian, have collaborated to produce the first biography of Edward Wilson for many years. It is richly illustrated with photographs and paintings, many of which are being made available to the public for the first time. The book traces the Cheltenham roots of Edward Wilson's extraordinary life, identifies many of the local sights associated with him, and follows him through to his death with Captain Scott on the return from the South Pole in 1912.
144pp. 12 Colour Plates and over 100 black and white illustrations.
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Cheltenham in Antarctica Special Edition
(The life of Edward Wilson)
(price 40.00 pounds)
Cheltenham in Antarctica: the Life of Edward Wilson has rapidly become a popular title. Amongst the many favourable comments received, there have been numerous requests for a hardback edition. In addition to reprinting the paperback to meet demand, we have therefore produced a special collector's edition of this title. It is numbered, boxed, bound in leather, signed by the authors and limited strictly to 500 copies only. The front of this special edition contains a rare reproduction of the famous portrait of Edward Wilson by A.U.Soord. All together we believe that this is a beautiful book, that everyone will simply enjoy having on their shelf.
144pp. 12 Colour Plates and over 100 black and white illustrations.
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Soudley Valley Rural Geology Trail
(price £1.95)
Soudley Valley Rural Geology Trail isbn 9781904530001 The Soudley Valley, near Cinderford in the Forest of Dean, exposes nearly 100 million years of Earth’s history in the rocks exposed in quarries and cuttings on either side of the valley. Rocks range from Devonian sandstones, mudstones and conglomerates, to Carboniferous coal seams, containing well preserved plant fossils. The steeply tilted beds of rock make the transition from one type to another easy to see.
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Cleeve Hill Rural Geology Trail
(price £1.95)
Cleeve Hill Rural Geology Trail isbn 978190453001x Cleeve Hill is the highest point of the Cotswolds, with views across the Severn Vale to the Malverns, and west across the rolling Cotswold Hills. The numerous old quarries on Cleeve Hill provide the most complete sequence of Middle Jurassic Inferior Oolite rocks in the country, including some not seen anywhere else.
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Leckhampton Hill Rural Geology Trail
(price £1.95)
Leckhampton Hill Rural Geology Trail isbn 9781904530052 Leckhampton Hill is a country park owned and managed by Cheltenham Borough Council and provides the thickest sequence of Middle Jurassic Inferior Oolite rocks along the Cotswold Escarpment. The guide includes information on the industrial heritage and history of the hill, which has been the site of extensive quarrying and civil unrest in the past.
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Robinswood Hill Rural Geology Trail
(price £1.95)
Robinswood Hill Rural Geology Trail isbn 9781904530028 Robinswood Hill is an outlier of the Cotswolds, now a country park, owned and managed by Gloucester City Council. The main quarry on the hill provides the best inland section of Early Jurassic clay and siltstones and was once used to supply raw material for Gloucester brickworks. The many springs that emanate from the hill supplied the first running water to the city of Gloucester.
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Crickley Hill Geology and Landscape Trail
(price £1.95)
Crickley Hill Geology and Landscape Trail isbn 9781904530060 Crickley Hill is an important area for geology, biodiversity and archaeology. The cliffs of Crickley Hill provide the thickest section through the ‘Pea Grit’ in the Cotswolds, beech woods and limestone grassland provide a diverse range of habitats for wildlife and there are the remains of ancient settlements dating back to the Neolithic, Bronze and Iron Ages.
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Stoney Furlong and Chedworth Valley Geology and Landscape Trai
(price £2.00)
Stoney Furlong and Chedworth Valley Geology and Landscape Trail isbn 9781904530107 The old quarry and railway cutting known as Stony Furlong exposes part of the White Limestone (Great Oolite Group), and Chedworth Valley is one of many deeply incised valleys of the Cotswolds, fed by springs emanating from the limestones in the valley sides. The trail explores the uses of local stone, from building and roofing, to aggregate and walling.
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South Cerney Geology and Landscape Heritage Trail
(price 2.50)
South Cerney Geology and Landscape Heritage Trail isbn 9781904530176 The pretty village of South Cerney has a wealth of recorded history going back to the Bronze Age, yet it is the geology on which the village stands that has determined its character. This guide leads a walk around the village to see how the rocks have shaped its landscape and development. It can be linked to a second trail of similar length in nearby Keynes Country Park.
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Keynes Country Park Geology and Landscape Heritage Trail
(price £2.50)
Keynes Country Park Geology and Landscape Heritage Trail isbn 9781904530169 The Cotswold Water Park is one of the most rapidly changing landscapes in Britain today. Sand and gravel extraction leaves large pits that are allowed to flood to create lakes, used for leisure and as wildlife havens. The gravels were deposited here by a major river system during the Ice Ages when man started to settle the area. Removal of soil and gravel has not only yielded a treasure trove of archaeological remains, but also revealed a fascinating natural history story stretching back 165 million years.
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Huntsmans Quarry Geology and Wildlife Trail
(price £2.50)
Huntsmans Quarry Geology and Wildlife Trail isbn 9781904530190 This trail is located just north of the village of Naunton, in the heart of the Cotswolds. You will see a disused quarry face, now a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), footprints from the 150 million year old dinosaur 'Megalosaurus', and learn about the flora and fauna inhabiting the area today. You will find out what the stone here is used for, and how the land is restored once quarrying has finished.
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(price £2.50)
Foss Cross Quarry Geology Guide isbn 9781904530183 The quarry at Foss Cross was active during the first part of the twentieth century extracting White Limestone for use as an aggregate in construction work and as ballast on the old Cheltenham to Southampton railway line. The White Limestone Formation is part of the Great Oolite Group, dating from c. 165 million years ago, and different beds in the quarry face demonstrate different features and a range of fossils.
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(price £2.50)
Coates and the Thames & Severn Canal / The Source of the Thames Geology and Landscape Heritage Trail isbn 9781904530152 This guide explores the area around the village of Coates looking at landscape and heritage features and their relationship to the geology of the area. Either a 3km or 5.5km trail can be followed, with the option of diverting to look at the source of the River Thames. During your walk, you will see rocks dating back c. 165 million years and will learn how the composition, location and fracturing of these rocks has given us building stone and springs, dry valleys and a major river, engineering difficulties and one of the most important aquifers in the UK.
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(price £2.50)
Chedworth Railway Cutting Geology Trail isbn 9781904530206 The railway cutting running behind the Roman Villa at Chedworth exposes a faulted section through the upper part of the Inferior Oolite Group. The rocks contain numerous fossils and the railway line is now a wildlife reserve, owned and managed by Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust. Active rock forming can be seen in the cutting where a spring is depositing tufa over the side of the cutting.
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Cirencester In Stone
(price £4.99)
Cirencester In Stone isbn 9781904530091 This accessible, lavishly illustrated guide to the variety of building stones found in Cirencester describes an easy to follow trail linking 23 buildings and archaeological sites that display the many fascinating geological features displayed in the town, such as spectacular fossils, minerals and structures. The guide is supplemented by a useful summary of local geology and the history of Cirencester.
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Gloucester In Stone
(price £4.99)
Gloucester In Stone isbn 9780948444371 This guide uses the four streets emanating from ‘The Cross’, taking each compass point street in turn. The walk explores the fascinating range of building stones that make up the urban fabric of central Gloucester. The guide draws attention to the great range of stones utilised, and also explores why some stones are more popular than others, and how their use has changed over time.
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