UC San Diego UC San Diego Electronic Theses and Dissertations Title The science of the stars in Danzig from Rheticus to Hevelius / Permalink https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7n41x7fd Author Jensen, Derek Publication Date 2006 Peer reviewed|Thesis/dissertation eScholarship.org Powered by the California Digital Library University of California UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO THE SCIENCE OF THE STARS IN DANZIG FROM RHETICUS TO HEVELIUS A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy in History (Science Studies) by Derek Jensen Committee in charge: Professor Robert S. Westman, Chair Professor Luce Giard Professor John Marino Professor Naomi Oreskes Professor Donald Rutherford 2006 The dissertation of Derek Jensen is approved, and it is acceptable in quality and form for publication on microfilm: _________________________________________ _________________________________________ _________________________________________ _________________________________________ _________________________________________ Chair University of California, San Diego 2006 iii FOR SARA iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Signature Page........................................................................................................... iii Dedication ................................................................................................................. iv Table of Contents ...................................................................................................... v List of Figures ........................................................................................................... vi Acknowledgments..................................................................................................... vii Vita, Publications and Fields of Study...................................................................... x A Note on Dating and Place Names.......................................................................... viii Abstract of the Dissertation....................................................................................... xii Introduction ...............................................................................................................1 Chapter 1. Civic Patronage in Sixteenth-Century Danzig: Rheticus, Rhode, Misocacus and Keckermann..............................................................8 2. Between Prophecy and Prognostication: Peter Crüger’s Astrological Defense.........................................................................51 3. The Vanity of Human Knowledge: Andreas Gryphius’s Heavenly Writings............................................................................................. 87 4. Private Patronage in Danzig and the Idea of a Plurality of Worlds: Abraham von Franckenberg’s Oculus Sidereus (1644) .................... 127 5. Describing Other Worlds: Hevelius’s Selenographia (1647) ........... 174 6. Hevelius’s “Last Judgment”.............................................................. 207 7. Between Tycho and Hevelius: Andreas Barth’s Funeral Sermon .... 259 Conclusion................................................................................................................. 288 Bibliography..............................................................................................................296 v LIST OF FIGURES 1. Abraham von Franckenberg, Oculus Sidereus , 1644.................................... 153 2. Travels of Peter Mundy ................................................................................. 160 3. Thomas Digges, A Perfit Description of the Coelestiall Orbes , 1576 ......... 161 4. Galileo Galilei, Sidereus Nuncius , 1610 ....................................................... 175 5. Travels of Peter Mundy ................................................................................. 177 6. Johannes Hevelius, Selenographia , 1647...................................................... 180 7. Hevelius, Machina Coelestis , 1673............................................................... 184 8. Hevelius, Selenographia ............................................................................... 199 9. Johannes Kepler, Tabulae Rudolphinae ........................................................ 201 10. Johannes Hevelius, Mantissa Prodromi Cometici , 1666 .............................. 222 11. Hevelius, Selenographia ............................................................................... 237 12. Hevelius, Machina Coelestis ......................................................................... 238 13. Hevelius, Machina Coelestis ......................................................................... 239 14. Hevelius, Machina Coelestis ......................................................................... 241 15. Hevelius, Uranographia , 1690...................................................................... 248 16. Hans Vredeman de Vries, “Justice and Injustice,” 1595............................... 251 17. de Vries, “Last Judgment of Christ,” 1595 ................................................... 252 18. Hans Memling, “Last Judgment”.................................................................. 253 19. Riccioli, Almagestum Novum ........................................................................ 256 20. Philosophical Transactions ........................................................................... 279 21. Hevelius, Uranographia ................................................................................ 284 vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This dissertation is the result of a journey that began in 1999, when I took a paraprofessional position in the L. Tom Perry Special Collections at Brigham Young University (BYU) in Provo, Utah. It was there that Dean Larsen introduced me to the greatest intellectual treasures of the Rocky Mountains. In the vaults of Special Collections, Dean showed me the library’s millionth-volume acquisition, Johannes Hevelius’s manuscript catalog of stars. He also introduced me to the works and manuscripts of Hevelius that the library owned, as well as the rich resources available in Special Collections related to early modern astronomy and astrology. Although I only knew Dean briefly and conversed with him only a couple of times before his death, he deeply impacted the course of my subsequent studies. I would also like to thank Scott Duvall and Russ Taylor of Special Collections for their patronage and patience. I am deeply indebted to support I had from libraries in California. A small grant from the University of California made it possible for me to travel to the Bancroft library at Berkeley, where I was able to research a rare copy of Abraham von Franckenberg’s Oculus Sidereus (1644), as well as study rare periodicals from Eastern Europe. The Special Collections staffs at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) and at San Diego State University have also made it possible for me to examine books and pamphlets. I am especially indebted to Joe Bray of the Mandeville Special Collections at UCSD for his infectious enthusiasm for rare books. With support from the 8 th International Summer School in the History of Science “Rethinking Scientific Knowledge in the 16 th and early 17 th Centuries” in Paris, I was vii able to make valuable contacts with new scholars in the field. In the afternoons, I took the liberty of conducting research in the Bibliothèque de l'Observatoire de Paris. A conference travel grant from the David M. Kennedy Center for International Studies at BYU made it possible for me to attend the Heritage of Technology Internationl Conference in Gdańsk, Poland in 2005. While in Gdańsk, I had the pleasure to walk the streets that Hevelius walked and conduct research in the Biblioteka Gdańska Polskiej Akademii Nauk. Conversations with and comments from several individuals have greatly improved the final form of this study. I would like to thank: Robin Bruce Barnes, Craig Callendar, Christiana Christopoulou, Alix Cooper, Matt Crawford, Zbigniew Cywiński, Jennifer Downes, Kaspar Eskildsen, Joseph Freedman, Cecily Heisser, Dryden Hull, Bruce Janacek, Andrzej Januszajtis, Adrian Johns, Heidi Keller-Lapp, Irving Kelter, David Levy, Mark Magleby, Sheila Rabin, Jason Rampelt, Ingrid Rowland, Steve Shapin, Anna Siemiginowska, Pamela Smith, Cynthia Truant, Eric Watkins and Edmund Wittbrodt. Richard Hacken retranslated all of Gryphius’s poems that I used in the dissertation, so that I could compare my translations with his. Thank you Dick. The history of science reading group at BYU generously read through an earlier draft of this dissertation. For spirited conversations, enjoyable evenings of cookies, brownies and intellectual treats, as well as their suggestions for this dissertation, I am deeply indebted to Allen Buskirk, Glen Cooper, David Grandy and Steve Peck. My doctoral committee has stuck with me over long distances and lengthy periods of time. Don Rutherford opened up early modern philosophy for me. Naomi Oreskes took me in as a new graduate student and helped me adjust to the rigors of scholarship viii and of teaching. Luce Giard helped fashion my critical thinking skills without making me cynical. I appreciate her spirit and her generosity. I will always remember John Marino’s concern for me as a student, assistant and colleague. He has taken time out to see me succeed, has offered his home as a gathering place for stimulating conversation and good food and is always concerned for the personal welfare of his colleagues