Heaven and Earth in the Middle Ages

Rudolph Simek

ISBN 10: 0851156088 / ISBN 13: 9780851156088

Published by Boydell and Brewer Ltd, GB, 1996

About this Item

A discussion of European understanding of the physical world from the 9th century to the 15th, ranging from astronomy to zoology - and refuting the more recent notion that the world was thought flat.What were the ideas held by medieval man concerning the size and shape of the earth? How many planets were there, and of what material was the universe constructed? What was the relationship between the sky and Heaven? How were snow, thunderstorms and comets explained? In this fascinating book Dr Simek shows that though nature was thought to be permeated by the will of God, there were numerous explanations for unknown phenomena, from the simple theories of the early middle ages to the more sophisticated ideas of the centres of learned scholasticism in Paris and Oxford. He presents a cross-section of the medieval knowledge of the physical world as deliberated and discussed byauthors from the 9th to the 15th centuries. He touches on fields as diverse as astronomy, geography, physics, botany and chemistry, and shows how medieval knowledge combined `scientific' explanations with others from popular mythology and folklore. RUDOLF SIMEKis Professor of Medieval German and Scandinavian Literature at the University of Bonn in Germany.

Seller Inventory # LU-9780851156088

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Heaven and Earth in the Middle Ages
• Publisher: Boydell and Brewer Ltd, GB
• Publication Date: 1996
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0851156088
• ISBN 13: 9780851156088
• Binding: Hardback
• Condition: New
• Weight: 422 grams

About this title

Synopsis

A discussion of European understanding of the physical world from the 9th century to the 15th, ranging from astronomy to zoology - and refuting the more recent notion that the world was thought flat.

What were the ideas held by medieval man concerning the size and shape of the earth? How many planets were there, and of what material was the universe constructed? What was the relationship between the sky and Heaven? How were snow, thunderstorms and comets explained?
In this fascinating book Dr Simek shows that though nature was thought to be permeated by the will of God, there were numerous explanations for unknown phenomena, from the simple theories of the early middle ages to the more sophisticated ideas of the centres of learned scholasticism in Paris and Oxford. He presents a cross-section of the medieval knowledge of the physical world as deliberated and discussed byauthors from the 9th to the 15th centuries. He touches on fields as diverse as astronomy, geography, physics, botany and chemistry, and shows how medieval knowledge combined `scientific' explanations with others from popular mythology and folklore. RUDOLF SIMEKis Professor of Medieval German and Scandinavian Literature at the University of Bonn in Germany.

About the Author

Rudolf Simek is Professor of Medieval German and Scandinavian Literature at the University of Bonn in Germany.