Fossil plants, Vol. 3: A text-book for students of botany and geology

About this book

Fossil Plants, Volume III is a scholarly textbook that continues Albert C. Seward’s ambitious survey of ancient vegetation. The work opens with a candid preface in which Seward explains the seven‑year delay since Volume II, attributing it to the unexpectedly large amount of material required for the gymnosperm section. He acknowledges the many colleagues whose collections, illustrations, and critiques have shaped the manuscript, and he signals his intention to treat the geographical distribution of fossil plants in a separate volume rather than compress it into the present text. The detailed table of contents that follows maps out an exhaustive treatment of extinct groups, from cycads and pteridosperms to the intricate seed morphologies of Paleozoic gymnosperms, providing a clear roadmap for the reader.

The prose reflects the early‑twentieth‑century scientific style: formal, meticulously referenced, and rich in taxonomic detail. Seward’s voice is that of a diligent researcher deeply embedded in a network of international scholars, and his narrative is punctuated by gratitude and humility. Readers who appreciate rigorous paleobotanical taxonomy, historical scientific discourse, and the meticulous illustration of fossil specimens will find this volume a valuable resource for both teaching and research.

Opening lines

In the Preface to Volume II published in 1910 I rashly stated that it was my intention “to devote such space as is available within the limits of a text-book to the neglected subject of the geographical distribution of plants at different stages in the history of the earth,” also that Volume III would be completed with as little delay as possible. Though nearly seven years have elapsed since the publication of the second volume it may fairly be said that the delay is not entirely due to causes which it was in my power to control. The subject of geographical distribution receives no connected treatment in Volumes III and IV for the simple reason that I underestimated the space required for the description of the Gymnosperms. …

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