EUCLIDE MEGARENSE PHILOSOPHO, SOLO INTRODUTTORE DELLE SCIENTIE MATHEMATICE. DILIGENTEMENTE RASSETTATO, ET ALLA integrità ridotto, per il degno professore di tal Scientie Nicolo Tartalea Brisciano.

EUCLIDE MEGARENSE; Nicolo Tartalea (Tartaglia?) (ED.); EUCLIDIS MEGARENSIS

Published by Curtio Troiano, Venezia, 1565

About this Item

Approx. 21 x 16 cm, parchment binding, spine label with gold spine title, library stamps of a private library, 315 p. (actually 630, since two pages are counted as one), (1), numbering errors (120-125), typographical enterprise on title page: Lion rampant facing the sun holds in his claws a cartouche with motto; that mark repeated on verso of last paper, with repeated typographical data, but dated 1566; almost on every page, silographic engravings depicting the elements and figures of Euclidean geometry. Scarce second edition of Tartaglia's very influential translation of all Euclid's 15 Books, as this Italian translation of Euclid was the first translation at all into the vernacular. The translation by Tartaglia was first published 1543 and was founded on the latin edition of Campanus and Zambetti. --- Spine label with small lacks, one page with small marginal tear (this not extending into the text), five leaves with minimal waterstains, few annotations in old hand, otherwise excellent, clean copy of the rare edition! --- Niccolo Fontana of Brescia has a great name in the history of mathematics. A cut in the face from a French soldier caused him to stammer and as a consequence of this he was called 'Tartaglia'. He is famous for his solution of third-degree equations which occasioned a long polemic with Cardano about priority. He is also known for "Tartaglia's Triangle", later known as "Pascal's Triangle", and he is well-known for his Archimedes-edition of 1543 and 1551 with his commentaries."The most famous source of Greek geometry is the monumental work of Euclid of Alexandria, called the "Elements" (around 300 B.C.). No other book of science had a comparable influence on the intellectual development of mankind. It was a treatise of geometry in thirteen books which included all the fundamental results of scientific geometry up to his time. Euclid did not claim for himself any particular discovery, he was merely a compiler. Yet, in view of the systematic arrangement of the subject matter and the exact logical procedure followed, we cannot doubt that he himself provided a large body of specific formulations and specific auxiliary theorems in his deductions. It is no longer possible to pass judgement on the authorship of much of this material; his book was meant as a textbook of geometry which paid attention to the material, while questions of priority did not enter the discussion." (Cornelius Lanzos in "Space through the Ages"). See also: Max Steck III:72 - Thomas-Stanford: 39 - Riccardi Euclideana V:1 - Adams E:993. - Brunet II:1090.

Seller Inventory # 22639

Bibliographic Details

• Title: EUCLIDE MEGARENSE PHILOSOPHO, SOLO INTRODUTTORE DELLE SCIENTIE MATHEMATICE. DILIGENTEMENTE RASSETTATO, ET ALLA integrità ridotto, per il degno professore di tal Scientie Nicolo Tartalea Brisciano.
• Publisher: Curtio Troiano, Venezia
• Publication Date: 1565
• Binding: Hardcover
• Condition: Sehr gut