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The Origins of the Ptolemaic Tradition and Its Adoption and Replacement in Colonial America* Ben Baumann M.A., University of Amsterdam

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The Origins of the Ptolemaic Tradition and Its Adoption and Replacement in Colonial America* Ben Baumann M.A., University of Amsterdam The Origins of the Ptolemaic Tradition and its Adoption and Replacement in Colonial America* Ben Baumann M.A., University of Amsterdam Abstract This monograph addresses the vital impact of ancient Greek thought on Colonial American cosmography, through an analysis of the ways Colonial Americans interpreted and applied Greek ideas. The conflict between the Ptolemaic tradition and the heliocentric model of Copernicus provides a focal point for this study. To highlight this cosmographic reformation, I examine the influence of Greek democratic culture, in particular the tolerance of open discussion, as well as attitudes of scientific objectivity, mathematical reasoning and religious openness. In turn, this cultural inheritance inspired and enabled leading Colonial American cosmographers associated with Harvard and Puritanism to view scientific truth as God’s truth. Thus, religiosity and the understanding of God’s created universe in Colonial America embraced an ongoing journey of discovery shaped by scientific inquiry and an openness to changing received wisdom concerning the cosmos. Correspondence | Ben Baumann, [email protected] Citation | Baumann, Ben. (2019) The Origins of the Ptolemaic Tradition and its Adoption and Replacement in Colonial America. Journal of Big History, III(2); 87 - 119. DOI | http://dx.doi.org/10.22339/jbh.v3i2.3280 ntroduction to the heliocentric theory of Nicolas Copernicus. Not IThe mapping of the universe and the attempt to surprisingly, in a land where scientific and religious understand the cosmos and one’s place within it thought overlapped so extensively, heated scholarly has been a constant intellectual quest of the human debate ensued over the topic and even resulted in race since ancient times. This systematic scholarly student protests at Harvard University. The record of investigation is known as cosmography. In this Big these debates can be traced back to the 17th-century History monograph, I analyze how early Colonial writings of Colonial America, as illustrated by several American scholars made sense of ancient Greek astronomical almanacs that since have been preserved understandings of cosmography. In particular, I will as vitally significant artifacts of intellectual life in the focus on the way these Greek ideas shaped American colonies. These almanacs were at the heart of published thinking not only about the cosmos itself, but also debate between the Ptolemaic tradition and the ideas about the way cosmographic understanding became of Copernicus. intertwined with views about God and theology. In order to organize this topic most effectively, I When they first arrived in North America, Colonial use Big History methodology, to break up my analysis Americans generally subscribed to a cosmography into distinctive phases to draw connections, bridging that was based on the Ptolemaic tradition. But, the period between the Colonial Americans and the once they became established in the new world, and ancient Greeks. These phases, each centered on three especially after the founding of Harvard University, distinct threads of intellectual development, illuminate a cosmographic revolution taking place in Europe the reception of ancient Greek astronomical knowledge began to resonate in the so-called New World. Some and reasoning by the Colonial Americans. The first Colonial American scholars willingly engaged in phase, represented in chapter II, titled “Origins of contemplation of the new outlook and proved receptive the Ptolemaic Tradition,” examines the origins of Journal of Big History Volume III Number 2 2019 The Origins of the Ptolemaic Tradition and its Adoption and Replacement in Colonial America Alexandrian scientific and philosophical tradition prominent among the primary sources are the writings and attempts to reconstruct its development. This of Zechariah Brigden, the groundbreaking Colonial analysis will be driven by three major points, which American scholar who analyzed the relationship I have identified to be crucial to the evolution of the between science and the Copernican tradition, as Ptolemaic tradition. 1. The Greek tradition of freedom well as why the Copernican tradition was superior to of thought, stemming from Athenian democracy. 2. its Ptolemaic predecessor. Related pro-Copernican The objective, empirical approach of Claudius Ptolemy essays by Colonial Americans such as Samuel Cheever, when conducting his research. 3. The mathematics Thomas Brattle, and John Foster bolster the case. A of Ptolemy on which his theory rests. To avoid any concluding assessment of Claudius Ptolemy’s own confusion, discussion of the mathematics concerns statements about the complementary relationship the theoretical implications of his quantitative study, between science and theology actually reinforces the rather than the specific mathematical calculations claims of Colonial American writers. themselves. To be sure, it is important to note that this research In the next phase in chapter III, called “Reception should serve as an introduction to the exploration of the Ptolemaic Tradition in Colonial America,” of the origins of Colonial American cosmography addresses how Colonial Americans received the in relation to the Ptolemaic tradition. There is more Ptolemaic tradition. Here it is important to identify the research to be done to fully grasp this topic, given the way the Ptolemaic understanding became established enormity of the subject. Still, I hope my work serves in America and the evidence of its influence on to acquaint readers with an intriguing matter that Colonial American cosmography. Taking into account has to my knowledge not previously been explored important primary and secondary sources, discussion in this way, entailing across such a large timescale revolves around three points: 1. The Ptolemaic between the founding of the Ptolemaic tradition and tradition in Europe prior to the founding of Colonial the intellectual awakening of Colonial Americans. America. 2. Popular Colonial American ideas about Upon founding their new lives in North America, astrology. 3. The Colonial American belief in the colonial thinkers were in some respects enjoying an Geocentric theory advanced by Ptolemy. Based on this opportunity to reconsider received wisdom about the contextual discussion, I concentrate on the primary world and the cosmos. In the midst of building a new source writings left by the Colonial American scholar society, they reflected on the journey of cosmographic and professor at Harvard, Charles Morton, who wrote wisdom across centuries and how ancient Greek the first Harvard University textbook on Astronomy. influence persisted across historical eras. Therefore, In my third phase, I inspect the Colonial American I hope this investigation will shed light on the major movement towards the ideas of Nicholas Copernicus connection between the cosmography of the Greek and evaluate the causes of the corresponding drift world and Colonial America that has largely been away from the Ptolemaic tradition. In chapter IV, titled unrecognized until now. “The Shift Towards the Copernican Tradition,” The Ultimately, through this methodological approach, causes are reducible to following three main lines of I will answer the following three main questions I pose. discussion: 1. The Puritan use of ancient Greek thought. Why and how did the Ptolemaic tradition develop in 2. The Puritan’s religious openness towards new ideas. the Greek world? Why and how did the Ptolemaic 3. The scientific support the Puritans received from tradition influence Colonial Americans? And lastly, England. Because this chapter represents the heart of why and how did Colonial Americans replace the my research, the claims of several important scholars Ptolemaic tradition, with the Copernican tradition? receive especially close scrutiny and help establish The Ptolemaic tradition originated in Alexandria, the foundation of my historical explanation. Most as opposed to somewhere else, due to a convergence Journal of Big History Page 88 Ben Baumann of historical circumstances. Prominent among them B.C.4 Eudoxus of Cnidus tried to explain the reason was a cultural outlook transmitted directly from for the daily orbit of these fixed stars around the Earth, democratic Athens to Alexandria that promoted arguing that it occurs due to what is called “uniform the freedom of scholarly thought. The scholarly motion.”5 Thus, Eudoxus believed that the sphere objectivity and empirical approach of Claudius would turn on a fixed axis once a day covering an Ptolemy clearly owe much to the influence of the equal distance at equal intervals of time. For Eudoxus, Athenian philosophers, as does Ptolemy’s emphasis on this explained why the stars returned every night in the usefulness of mathematics. These factors would in the same position, because unfortunately Eudoxus did turn lay the foundations of the Ptolemaic tradition in not have the tools to notice that the stars can actually the Western world. The views of Colonial Americans move. Eudoxus’ successors, Aristotle and Ptolemy, reflect this enduring tradition, as seen in their belief would both come to this conclusion as well. in astrology and the geocentric theory, a direct Now, planets were a bit trickier for these inheritance from England. Subsequent replacement astronomers, because the planets did not actually of the Ptolemaic tradition in Colonial America was behave according to this theory and the Greeks possible due to a combination of religious openness studying these astronomical
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