Complete 60-Part Set — Animate Creation: A Popular Edition of Our Living World, 1885-1898

Amnimate Creation, Published 1885–1898 by Selmar Hess in New York, is a true Victorian subscription magazine series — not originally sold in bookstores but issued by subscription only in individual parts or “fascicles” to be collected over time.

🗞️ Subscription Magazine Format

Originally, the work was released in 60 separate issues, printed in illustrated paper wrappers, each priced at 25 cents and mailed to subscribers as it was published.  Collectors then kept these parts as they were released or bound them into volumes — which makes a complete set like this increasingly rare.

📘 What Animate Creation Is

• A popular edition of Rev. J. G. Wood’s Our Living World — a classic natural history text.

• Revised and adapted to American zoology by Joseph B. Holder, M.D.

• Text written for general readers and nature lovers, describing animals from around the world.

🎨 Illustrations & Plates — The Best Part

This set is richly illustrated throughout and is a major reason collectors prize it:

• Color chromolithograph plates printed by Louis Prang & Co. — vivid, detailed, and beautiful.

• Full-page black & white wood engravings that capture anatomical detail and dramatic wildlife scenes.

• Hundreds of in-text illustrations accompanying species descriptions.

The artwork has scientific accuracy and Victorian artistic flair — many plates are absolutely frame-worthy and highly decorative.

📊 What’s Included

• 60 complete magazine issues (a full subscription run)

• 598 total pages across all parts

• Each issue measures 10.25” × 13.25”

• Good to great condition for age — pages intact, wrappers with expected shelf wear

• Part 1 has a handwritten index note glued to the cover that identifies which parts contain particular animal groups

🦁 Natural History Coverage

The series explores a broad range of the animal kingdom in subscription format, including:

• Mammals

• Birds

• Fishes and marine animals

• Reptiles and amphibians

• Insects and other invertebrates

Each part offered subscribers an installment of new text and illustrations — a 19th-century way to build a natural history library over time.

🌿 Why This Set Is Special

Because it was issued by subscription, complete runs in original magazine format are rare and highly collectible. The combination of text, chromolithographs, engraved plates, and subscription history makes this set both visually striking and historically significant — ideal for collectors of natural history, Victorian periodicals, and illustrated art documents.