Science and the Secrets of Nature: Books of Secrets in Medieval and Early Modern Culture

By explaining how to sire multicolored horses, produce nuts without shells, and create an egg the size of a human head, Giambattista Della Porta's Natural Magic (1559) conveys a fascination with tricks and illusions that makes it a work difficult for historians of science to take seriously. Yet, according to William Eamon, it is in the how-to books written by medieval alchemists, magicians, and artisans that modern science has its roots. These compilations of recipes on everything from parlor tricks through medical remedies to wool-dyeing fascinated medieval intellectuals because they promised access to esoteric secrets of nature. In closely examining this rich but little-known source of literature, Eamon reveals that printing technology and popular culture had as great, if not stronger, an impact on early modern science as did the traditional academic disciplines.

Author: William Eamon
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Published: 06/02/1996
Pages: 512
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 1.61lbs
Size: 9.19h x 6.08w x 1.24d
ISBN: 9780691026022

About the Author
William Eamon is Professor of History at New Mexico State University.