Galli - Miscellaneo Matematico - 1694





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Description from the seller
CLOCKS, COSMOGRAPHY AND MECHANICS IN THE PARMA BAROQUE—with a Letter from America
First edition of the Miscellaneo Matematico by Marco Galli, a Bologna-based mathematician active in the second half of the seventeenth century, a treatise uniting mathematics, geometry, gnomonics and practical applications in a compendium of great technical-scientific interest.
Printed in Parma in 1694, the volume stands out for the richness of its illustrative apparatus — 4 fold-out woodcut plates, numerous figures and diagrams in the text, many full-page — and for the presence of movable devices (volvelle), a typical element of the operating scientific handbooks of the era.
The map of America on p. 188 situates the work within the context of modern geography and the global measurement of space.
MARKET VALUE
Early seventeenth-century editions of applied mathematics treatises with fold-out plates and original volvelle are consistently sought after. A copy like this generally falls within a range of 1,000 to 1,800 euros, with possible increases when both volvelle are intact and the paper shows good freshness.
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION AND CONDITION
In 4°. Pp. (4), 14nn; 352; (2). Contemporary limp parchment binding with gold-tooled border on the boards, corner and central flowers impressed in gold; manuscript title on the spine.
4 fold-out woodcut plates.
Numerous woodcut illustrations and diagrams in the text, many full-page.
Map of America on p. 188.
Woodcut initials and endpieces.
Both original volvelle present. Leaves with some browning and foxing. In old books with a long history, a few imperfections not always noted in the description may be present.
FULL TITLE AND AUTHOR
Miscellaneo matematico: an work in which is contained the geometric method of measuring, such as of surfaces, heights, and widths, and bodies, as well as leveling of lands and waters, with particular instruments; likewise the method of dividing every figure … and a brief treatise on agrimensura (land surveying), and how to make every sort of sundial, as well as another treatise on raising waters with trumpets, and with other instruments, with nine inventions, and a method of reducing the weight in those trumpets...
Parma, for Ippolito and Francesco Maria Rosati, 1694.
Marco Galli.
CONTEXT AND SIGNIFICANCE
The Miscellaneo matematico fits into the tradition of practical mathematics between the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries, when the construction of instruments and the measurement of time and space were central areas of technical knowledge. The work combines gnomonics, geometry, astronomy and applied mechanics, offering operational solutions for the construction of dials, instruments and calculation devices.
The volvelle — rotating paper discs used for astronomical and chronological calculations — transforms the book into an active scientific instrument. The presence of the map of America testifies to the interconnection between theoretical mathematics and global geography in the Baroque era.
BIOGRAPHY OF THE AUTHOR
Marco Galli, a Bologna-born mathematician active in the second half of the seventeenth century, worked within the spread of applied sciences in northern Italy. His output reflects the Renaissance mathematical heritage and Baroque interest in measuring instruments, calculation and time determination.
PRINTING HISTORY AND CIRCULATION
First edition, printed in Parma in 1694 by Rosati. Technical works with movable apparatus tended to have limited print runs and, over time, dispersions of the mechanical parts. Copies with intact volvelle are today less common on the antiquarian market.
BIBLIOGRAPHY AND REFERENCES
ICCU / OPAC SBN, Parmense edition 1694.
Comparisons with Italian trattati on gnomonics and practical mathematics of the seventeenth century.
Studies on volvelle and other paper calculation instruments in the early modern period.
Seller's Story
CLOCKS, COSMOGRAPHY AND MECHANICS IN THE PARMA BAROQUE—with a Letter from America
First edition of the Miscellaneo Matematico by Marco Galli, a Bologna-based mathematician active in the second half of the seventeenth century, a treatise uniting mathematics, geometry, gnomonics and practical applications in a compendium of great technical-scientific interest.
Printed in Parma in 1694, the volume stands out for the richness of its illustrative apparatus — 4 fold-out woodcut plates, numerous figures and diagrams in the text, many full-page — and for the presence of movable devices (volvelle), a typical element of the operating scientific handbooks of the era.
The map of America on p. 188 situates the work within the context of modern geography and the global measurement of space.
MARKET VALUE
Early seventeenth-century editions of applied mathematics treatises with fold-out plates and original volvelle are consistently sought after. A copy like this generally falls within a range of 1,000 to 1,800 euros, with possible increases when both volvelle are intact and the paper shows good freshness.
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION AND CONDITION
In 4°. Pp. (4), 14nn; 352; (2). Contemporary limp parchment binding with gold-tooled border on the boards, corner and central flowers impressed in gold; manuscript title on the spine.
4 fold-out woodcut plates.
Numerous woodcut illustrations and diagrams in the text, many full-page.
Map of America on p. 188.
Woodcut initials and endpieces.
Both original volvelle present. Leaves with some browning and foxing. In old books with a long history, a few imperfections not always noted in the description may be present.
FULL TITLE AND AUTHOR
Miscellaneo matematico: an work in which is contained the geometric method of measuring, such as of surfaces, heights, and widths, and bodies, as well as leveling of lands and waters, with particular instruments; likewise the method of dividing every figure … and a brief treatise on agrimensura (land surveying), and how to make every sort of sundial, as well as another treatise on raising waters with trumpets, and with other instruments, with nine inventions, and a method of reducing the weight in those trumpets...
Parma, for Ippolito and Francesco Maria Rosati, 1694.
Marco Galli.
CONTEXT AND SIGNIFICANCE
The Miscellaneo matematico fits into the tradition of practical mathematics between the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries, when the construction of instruments and the measurement of time and space were central areas of technical knowledge. The work combines gnomonics, geometry, astronomy and applied mechanics, offering operational solutions for the construction of dials, instruments and calculation devices.
The volvelle — rotating paper discs used for astronomical and chronological calculations — transforms the book into an active scientific instrument. The presence of the map of America testifies to the interconnection between theoretical mathematics and global geography in the Baroque era.
BIOGRAPHY OF THE AUTHOR
Marco Galli, a Bologna-born mathematician active in the second half of the seventeenth century, worked within the spread of applied sciences in northern Italy. His output reflects the Renaissance mathematical heritage and Baroque interest in measuring instruments, calculation and time determination.
PRINTING HISTORY AND CIRCULATION
First edition, printed in Parma in 1694 by Rosati. Technical works with movable apparatus tended to have limited print runs and, over time, dispersions of the mechanical parts. Copies with intact volvelle are today less common on the antiquarian market.
BIBLIOGRAPHY AND REFERENCES
ICCU / OPAC SBN, Parmense edition 1694.
Comparisons with Italian trattati on gnomonics and practical mathematics of the seventeenth century.
Studies on volvelle and other paper calculation instruments in the early modern period.
