06-02-2016, 10:20 AM
Hi Don,
It's a lovely picture and despite its date manages to carry over some of the character of the models it used - the style of drawing is like something from eleventh- or twelfth-century England.
Christopher Walker's book, Astronomy Before the Telescope is helpful about these things, since he read a heap of the original Latin works, as well as regarding the pictures. Apparently sighting tubes were in use from about 800 AD.
The edition of his work which I have is dated 1996. Not sure if it's been re-published since.
On p.177 ..
Latin illustrators quite often just copy from an older text, maybe 'updating' the clothes a bit, or making the figures look a little more like the intended audience, so I should think it would be a good idea to read the text with that picture to be sure that it actually refers to a recent event, and hasn't just become a schematic or generic sort of picture.
D.N. O'Donovan
It's a lovely picture and despite its date manages to carry over some of the character of the models it used - the style of drawing is like something from eleventh- or twelfth-century England.
Christopher Walker's book, Astronomy Before the Telescope is helpful about these things, since he read a heap of the original Latin works, as well as regarding the pictures. Apparently sighting tubes were in use from about 800 AD.
The edition of his work which I have is dated 1996. Not sure if it's been re-published since.
On p.177 ..
Quote:From Carolingian times onwards (ca. 800 AD) ... monastic schools...astronomy... still a predominantly literary activity... but the introduction of new instruments in the form of simple sighting tubes testifies to an increased interest in observing the details of the starry heavens more closely, and records of spectacular phenomena such as comets and eclipses were frequently entered into calendars and historical annals".
Latin illustrators quite often just copy from an older text, maybe 'updating' the clothes a bit, or making the figures look a little more like the intended audience, so I should think it would be a good idea to read the text with that picture to be sure that it actually refers to a recent event, and hasn't just become a schematic or generic sort of picture.
D.N. O'Donovan