Renaissance Astrolabes and their Makers

Renaissance Astrolabes and their Makers PDF Author: Gerard L'E. Turner
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
ISBN: 1040235719
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 308

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Book Description
This book is about the archaeology of science, or what can be learnt from the systematic examination of the artefacts made by precision craftsmen for the study of the natural world. An international authority on historical scientific instruments, Gerard Turner has collected here his essays on European astrolabes and related topics. By 1600 the astrolabe had nearly ceased to be made and used in the West, and before that date there was little of the source material for the study of instruments that exists for more modern times. It is necessary to 'read' the instruments themselves, and astrolabes in particular are rich in all sorts of information, mathematical, astronomical, metallurgical, in addition to what they can reveal about craftsmanship, the existence of workshops, and economic and social conditions. There is a strong forensic element in instrument research, and Gerard Turner's achievements include the identification of three astrolabes made by Gerard Mercator, all of whose instruments were thought to have been destroyed. Other essays deal with the discovery of an important late 16th-century Florentine workshop, and of a group of mid-15th-century German astrolabes linked to Regiomontanus.

Renaissance Astrolabes and their Makers

Renaissance Astrolabes and their Makers PDF Author: Gerard L'E. Turner
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
ISBN: 1040235719
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 308

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Book Description
This book is about the archaeology of science, or what can be learnt from the systematic examination of the artefacts made by precision craftsmen for the study of the natural world. An international authority on historical scientific instruments, Gerard Turner has collected here his essays on European astrolabes and related topics. By 1600 the astrolabe had nearly ceased to be made and used in the West, and before that date there was little of the source material for the study of instruments that exists for more modern times. It is necessary to 'read' the instruments themselves, and astrolabes in particular are rich in all sorts of information, mathematical, astronomical, metallurgical, in addition to what they can reveal about craftsmanship, the existence of workshops, and economic and social conditions. There is a strong forensic element in instrument research, and Gerard Turner's achievements include the identification of three astrolabes made by Gerard Mercator, all of whose instruments were thought to have been destroyed. Other essays deal with the discovery of an important late 16th-century Florentine workshop, and of a group of mid-15th-century German astrolabes linked to Regiomontanus.

Renaissance Astrolabes and Their Makers

Renaissance Astrolabes and Their Makers PDF Author: Gerard L'Estrange Turner
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 320

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Book Description
An international authority on historical scientific instruments, Gerard Turner has collected here his essays on European astrolabes and related topics. By 1600 the astrolabe had nearly ceased to be made and used in the West, and before that date there was little of the source material for the study of instruments that exists for more modern times. Astrolabes in particular are rich in all sorts of information, mathematical, astronomical, metallurgical, in addition to what they can reveal about craftsmanship, the existence of workshops, and economic and social conditions. Gerard Turner's forensic achievements include the identification of three astrolabes made by Gerard Mercator, all of whose instruments were thought to have been destroyed. Other essays concentrate on the discovery of an important late 16th-century Florentine workshop, and a group of mid-15th-century German astrolabes linked to Regiomontanus.

Islamic Astronomy and Geography

Islamic Astronomy and Geography PDF Author: David A. King
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1000585158
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 357

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Book Description
This volume of 12 studies, mainly published during the past 15 years, begins with an overview of the Islamic astronomy covering not only sophisticated mathematical astronomy and instrumentation but also simple folk astronomy, and the ways in which astronomy was used in the service of religion. It continues with discussions of the importance of Islamic instruments and scientific manuscript illustrations. Three studies deal with the regional schools that developed in Islamic astronomy, in this case, Egypt and the Maghrib. Another focuses on a curious astrological table for calculating the length of life of any individual. The notion of the world centred on the sacred Kaaba in Mecca inspired both astronomers and proponents of folk astronomy to propose methods for finding the qibla, or sacred direction towards the Kaaba; their activities are surveyed here. The interaction between the mathematical and folk traditions in astronomy is then illustrated by an 11th-century text on the qibla in Transoxania. The last three studies deal with an account of the geodetic measurements sponsored by the Caliph al-Ma'mûn in the 9th century; a world-map in the tradition of the 11th-century polymath al-Bîrûnî, alas corrupted by careless copying; and a table of geographical coordinates from 15th-century Egypt.

Mary and Philip

Mary and Philip PDF Author: Alexander Samson
Publisher: Manchester University Press
ISBN: 1526142252
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 469

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Book Description
The co-monarchy of Mary I and Philip II put England at the heart of early modern Europe. This positive reassessment of their joint reign counters a series of parochial, misogynist and anti-Catholic assumptions, correcting the many myths that have grown up around the marriage and explaining the reasons for its persistent marginalisation in the historiography of sixteenth-century England. Using new archival discoveries and original sources, the book argues for Mary as a great Catholic queen, while fleshing out Philip’s important contributions as king of England. It demonstrates the many positive achievements of this dynastic union in everything from culture, music and art to cartography, commerce and exploration. An important corrective for anyone interested in the history of Tudor England and Habsburg Spain.

Humanistica Lovaniensia

Humanistica Lovaniensia PDF Author: Gilbert Tournoy
Publisher: Leuven University Press
ISBN: 9789058673329
Category : Foreign Language Study
Languages : en
Pages : 524

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Book Description
Volume 52

Astrolabes in Medieval Cultures

Astrolabes in Medieval Cultures PDF Author:
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004387862
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 516

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Book Description
First published as a special issue of the journal Medieval Encounters (vol. 23, 2017), this volume, edited by Josefina Rodríguez-Arribas, Charles Burnett, Silke Ackermann, and Ryan Szpiech, brings together fifteen studies on various aspects of the astrolabe in medieval cultures. The astrolabe, developed in antiquity and elaborated throughout the Middle Ages, was used for calculation, teaching, and observation, and also served astrological and medical purposes. It was the most popular and prestigious of the mathematical instruments, and was found equally among practitioners of various sciences and arts as among princes in royal courts. By considering sources and instruments from Muslim, Christian, and Jewish contexts, this volume provides state-of-the-art research on the history and use of the astrolabe throughout the Middle Ages. Contributors are Silke Ackermann, Emilia Calvo, John Davis, Laura Fernández Fernández, Miquel Forcada, Azucena Hernández, David A. King, Taro Mimura, Günther Oestmann, Josefina Rodríguez-Arribas, Sreeramula Rajeswara Sarma, Petra G. Schmidl, Giorgio Strano, Flora Vafea, and Johannes Thomann.

Astrolabes from Medieval Europe

Astrolabes from Medieval Europe PDF Author: David A. King
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
ISBN: 1040241824
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 422

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Book Description
This is the fourth set of studies in the Variorum series by David King, a leading authority on the history of astronomy in Islamic civilization and on medieval astronomical instruments, European as well as Islamic. The first of the eleven studies collected here deals with medieval instruments in general, as precious historical sources. The following papers focus on individual astrolabes from the European Middle Ages and early Renaissance that are of singular historical importance. Two look at the origins of the simple universal horary quadrant and the complicated universal horary dial (navicula). The collection concludes with a list of all known medieval European astrolabes, ordered chronologically by region. Three "landmark" astrolabes are discussed: (1) the earliest known European astrolabe from 10th-century Catalonia, that milieu in which the astrolabe first became known to Europeans; (2) an astrolabe from 14th-century Picardy bearing numerals written in monastic ciphers as well as a later dedication mentioning two friends of Erasmus; (3) the splendid astrolabe presented in 1462 by the German astronomer Regiomontanus to his patron Cardinal Bessarion, with its enigmatic angel and Latin dedication, here presented in the context of other astrolabes of similar design from 15th-century Vienna.

Renaissance Et Réforme

Renaissance Et Réforme PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Reformation
Languages : en
Pages : 578

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Book Description


Astrolabes and Angels, Epigrams and Enigmas

Astrolabes and Angels, Epigrams and Enigmas PDF Author: David A. King
Publisher: Franz Steiner Verlag Wiesbaden GmbH
ISBN:
Category : Acrostics
Languages : en
Pages : 368

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Book Description
On the astrolabe presented by the young German astronomer Regiomontanus to his ageing patron Cardinal Bessarion there is a Latin epigram and the image of an angel. The former is a geometrically-arranged acrostic with eight hidden vertical axes. Of these, the two principal ones correspond precisely to the two principal axes of the enigmatic painting "The Flagellation of Christ" by Piero della Francesca. In this are five figures in a flagellation scene on the left and three "modern" figures on the right, including a bearded Greek and an "angelic" young man in cardinal red. Over 40 interpretations of the three "moderns" have been proposed over the past 150 years. In this book, David King shows how clusters of letters across the epigram reveal double or multiple identities for each and every one of the eight persons in the painting. The only new person in the drama is Regiomontanus, whose epigram provided the inspiration for the painting. His image embodies three talented young men close to Bessarion who had recently died, and also symbolizes the cardinal's hope for the future.

In Synchrony with the Heavens

In Synchrony with the Heavens PDF Author: David A. King
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Astronomy
Languages : en
Pages : 1152

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Book Description