|
The Aeronautical Annuals of 1895, 1896, and 1897, edited by
James Means, are among the most important pre-aviation books ever published.
Prized by collectors, the original editions are extremely rare, a set being
worth around $3,000! Now, for the first time in over a hundred years, and in
celebration of the First Flight Centennial, they are being made available
once again.
The Aeronautical Annuals were recommended to the Wrights when they wrote the
Smithsonian in 1899 asking for reading material on the subject of human flight. The
brothers then obtained and devoured the books, giving them more incentive to
investigate the problem of flying.
These are books of vision compilations of plans, dreams, and schemes written
by some of aviation’s greatest visionaries. Leonardo Da Vinci, Sir George
Cayley, Ben Franklin, Samuel P. Langley, Sir Hiram Maxim, Augustus Herring,
Octave Chanute, and Otto Lilienthal, to name a few. All share what they did
to help advance aviation.
These books provided the Wright brothers with a wealth of knowledge about
the thinking and experiments which had been done up until that time giving
them a foundation on which to formulate their own ideas. Fascinating, must
reads for all aviation enthusiasts.
Each Annual has approximately 200 pages, with many drawings and incredible
photographs. Price for each volume is only $19.95. |
