Magnetologia Curiosa

"We may see how far from unproductive magnetick philosophy is, how agreeable, how helpful, how divine! Sailors when tossed about on the waves with continuous cloudy weather, and unable by means of the celestial luminaries to learn anything about the place or the region in which they are, with a very slight effort and with a small instrument are comforted, and learn the latitude of the place." [William Gilbert, 1600, 'De Magnete']

[click for much enlarged versions]

Fumbling around in the 17th century for the rational means by which to comprehend and describe such a mysterious force as magnetism must have been a very difficult intellectual enterprise (and still is, for many of us).

The abstraction of these emerging scientific developments into a visual format to accompany and highlight the practical explanations presented its own challenges. When you only have a limited understanding of the nature of the science and a very modest visual vocabulary in historical terms with which to express these ideas, it seems quite appropriate I suppose, with the benefit of hindsight, to see that the early illustration work in this area was a mixture of old and new representations.

The illustrations above come from a 1690 book by Joachim d'Alencé (Dalencé) called 'Magnetologia Curiosa', from the Max Planck Institute's European Cultural Heritage Online. It is not a particularly outstanding work in science history nor even in technical virtuosity of illustration. But I think it's interesting nevertheless in the way it employs allegorical motifs (hands from clouds; cupids) for instance, to underline the notion that there are great forces at work. [The original book was published in 1687 under the title 'Traitté de l'aiman'] The book is divided into 2 sections: a short outline of magnetism and experiments performed and the back section containing about 30 illustrations - I think I've posted all of them above, but larger versions in full page format are available at the ECHO site.

The seminal text on magnetism from the early modern period was 'De Magnete' by William Gilbert (1600) in which, among other things, he described the geomagnetic basis for the operation of a compass and coined the latin derivative for the word electricity. It was not only the first work on experimental physics but is also widely regarded as the beginning of modern science. It had a profound influence on Galileo, Kepler and Newton.

• Joachim d'Alencé: short biography, bookshop reference, his other notable book on thermometers.
• William Gilbert: 'Forgotten Genius'; multiple biographies; 'The Great Magnet: The Earth'; 'De Magnete' (but I found it very slow loading)
• History of Magnetism and Electricity.
• Previously: Otto Von Guericke; Giovanni Aldini.

Ornamental Decoration in 17th Century France

Jean Le Pautre (Lepautre or Lepaultre) (1618-1682) has been described as the most important ornament engraver of the 17th century. His prodigious output extended to more than 2000 prints, mostly from his own original designs.

He was not only the originator of the grandiose Louis XIV style but was also responsible for disseminating and popularising its full lavish repertoire throughout Europe. Le Pautre's often over-elaborate and flamboyant designs frequently included arabesques, grotesques and cartouches, together with elements from classical mythology.

His diverse range of subject matter, influenced by his carpentry/joinery architectural background, included: friezes, wallpaper, alcoves, fireplaces, furniture, murals, ceiling mouldings, fountains and grottoes.


A 3-volume series of his works was released in 1751 by Charles-Antoine Jombert of Paris, under the title: 'Oeuvres D'Architecture De Jean Le Pautre' and was recently uploaded by the University of Heidelberg. (Hint: to get to the thumbnails, click on 'Titelblatt', then the '-' symbol and arrow across to reach the 147 illustrations) The sample of images above are from Volume One which concentrates on the grotesque/arabesque prints.

• Biography at Artnet.
• Antiquarian Booksellers' listing.
• Getty Museum biography and inventory listing at OAC.
• Related: Tales of the Arabesque at Giornale Nuovo; Gian Lorenzo Bernini (Le Pautre and he shared a mutual respect) at Lines and Colors.

Simiarum et Vespertilionum

Zoologist, Johann Baptist von Spix, and botanist, Carl Friedrich Philipp von Martius were sent as part of an official Austrian scientific expedition to Brazil to coincide with a marriage between a Bavarian princess and Portuguese Prince who would later become the King of Brazil.

"From 1817 to 1820, traveling separately or together at different stages, Spix's and Martius's explorations in the interior of the country turned out to be one of the most important scientific expeditions of the 19th century. Despite illnesses and harrowing obstacles Spix went up the Amazon River and through its jungles as far as the frontier with Peru.

They were the first Europeans to explore these areas since La Condamine in the 1730s/40s , and "their collections - including 85 species of mammals, 350 species of birds, nearly 2,700 species of insects, and fifty-seven living animals - provided material for a vast number of works," as the Dictionary of Scientific Biography notes."

Included among the many publications was Spix's 1823 book, 'Simiarum et Vespertilionum Brasiliensium Species Novae', online at the Smithsonian Institution. The 38 plates are very often stylised, with the addition of human facial features, but are not quite as outlandish as the fanciful pictures Schreber published in the 1770s - seen in a previous post. Coincidentally, Martius was good friends with Schreber, and although a few of the above images seem familiar to me (probably from compilations), none were obviously copied from Schreber's books.

• Carl Friedrich Philipp von Martius was responsible for the massive 'Flora Brasiliensis', published over 60 years up to 1906. See: The Martius Project.
• University of South Carolina 19th century travel books about Brazil.
• 'Johann Baptist Ritter von Spix: primeiro zoólogo de Munique e pesquisador no Brasil' (portuguese).
• Johann Baptist Ritter von Spix (german).
• Cyanopsitta spixii (Spix's macaw), possibly the rarest bird in the world, is now extinct in the wild. See: i, ii, iii, iv, v, vi.