The Prodromus of Nicolaus Steno's Dissertation Concerning a Solid Body Enclosed by Process of Nature Within a Solid. An English Version with an Introduction and Explanatory Notes by John Garrett Winter. With a Foreword by William H. Hobbs.

STENO, Nicolaus [STENSEN, Niels] (1638-1686):

Published by New York: Macmillan, 1916., 1916

About this Item

English translation of De solido intra solidum naturaliter contento dissertationis prodromus (1st Latin ed., 1669). Frontispiece, vii, pp. 169-283; plates v-x (Frontispiece = Plate v). Original wrappers. Very Good. '[H]is great work . . . which outlines the principles of modern geology . . . presents only the outline of a discussion, yet almost every sentence or paragraph contains new insights. After an introductory methodological discussion, Stensen states his purpose: 'to find, in the case of a body possessed of a certain shape and produced on the basis of natural laws, the proofs in the body itself which reveal the site and the type of its origin.' There follow three important sections: the first concerning the relationship in time between the enclosing body and the body enclosed; the second, the determination of the site and origin of a solid body, and the third, the role of fluids in nature. . . . A glance back to the first main part of the Prodromus shows the value of Stensen's methodological directives. He demanded that in the solution of a problem the questions connected with it be considered, that facts be distinguished from assumptions, and that the individual result be examined in connection with the history of science' (Gustav Scherz in D.S.B. XIII: 34). Scherz mentions Winter's translation, and also the first in English from 1671 (the year Steno turned 33), just two years after the original Latin. The translator was none other than Henry Oldenburg (identified as 'H. O.' on the title page), Secretary of the Royal Society. That he translated this work, and so shortly after its original publication, seems to speak further to its importance. I mentioned Steno's age for, while he was relatively long-lived for his time, he is another example of one whose great scientific achievements came quite early in his life. Seller Inventory # 24439

Bibliographic Details

Title: The Prodromus of Nicolaus Steno's ...

Publisher: New York: Macmillan, 1916.

Publication Date: 1916

Binding: Soft cover

Condition: Very Good

Dust Jacket Condition: No Jacket

Edition: 1st Edition