One book, three Fellows of the Royal Society: biography of a copy of James Croll’s <i>Climate and time in their geological relations</i> (1875)

In 1875, the climate change pioneer and autodidact, James Croll (1821–1890), saw the publication of his monumental volume Climate and time in their geological relations. The following year, a presentation copy of the book was received by Charles Wyville Thomson (1830–1882), then chief scientist on the Challenger expedition (1872–1876), by the time of his arrival in Ascension Island. Following Wyville Thomson’s death, the book became part of the library of John Murray (1841–1914), his successor as Director of the Challenger offices in Edinburgh. At some stage the book was obtained by an Amsterdam bookseller before it eventually made a return to the UK in 2003. This paper follows the biography of a documented copy of this influential book as it passed through the hands of three notable Fellows of the Royal Society of London. Embedded within the narrative is discussion of book giving and the connecting thread between Croll, ocean science and the scientists associated with the Challenger expedition.