Charles Lyell's Antiquity of Man combines the three major themes of glaciology, evolution and the age of man, and contains his first published statements about Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection (Garrison and Morton). Despite their differences, Lyell was important to Darwin, as stated in Life and Letters (1888): 'Amongst the great scientific men, no one has been nearly so friendly and kind as Lyell.'
Sir Charles Lyell, The Geological Evidences of the Antiquity of Man. London: John Murray, 1863. Medical GN 738 L984
When Darwin sent John Lubbock (1834-1913) a copy of the first edition of Origin of Species, he wrote: 'I care not for Reviews, but for the opinion of men like you & Hooker & Huxley & Lyell &c...'. Lubbock, a neighbour of Darwin’s from 1841 onwards, used the idea of natural selection as a 'true cause' to his own work, especially in his work, Origin of Civilisation, where he connected 'savages' with 'civilised' societies.
Sir John Lubbock, The Origin of Civilisation and the Primitive Condition of Man. London: Longmans, Green, 1875. Leith Storage 9KE A
Thomas Huxley (1825-95) was an autodidact, who coined the term 'agnostic'. Self-proclaimed as 'Darwin’s bull-dog', he was the most active supporter of Darwin’s evolutionary theory. Indeed, his famous response to the idea of natural selection was 'How extremely stupid not to have thought of that!' Evidence as to Man’s Place in Nature is his most important separate scientific writing, and the frontispiece line-drawing of 'Gibbon to Man' says it all: mankind must, on logical biological grounds be place with the apes. This was Huxley at his truculent best.
Thomas Henry Huxley, Evidence as to Man's Place in Nature. London: Williams and Norgate, 1863. Leith Storage HBH
Sir Charles Lyell
Thomas Henry Huxley
