1st Edition
Science in the Early Roman Empire Pliny the Elder, His Sources and Influence
The studies collected in Science in the Early Roman Empire (1986) represent key research done on the Elder Pliny – an important and difficult figure whose Natural History forms a valuable compendium at a fixed historical point in time of ancient science. Its subsequent influence was enormous, remaining the most comprehensive scientific encyclopaedia even until the Renaissance. The chapters seek to locate Pliny in his social and intellectual milieu, to survey his approach to particular sciences such as astronomy, mineralogy, botany and pharmacopoeia. Two chapters consider the response in the Renaissance to his work.
1. The Elder Pliny and his Times J. Reynolds 2. The Plint Translation Group of Germany R.C.A. Rottländer 3. The Structure of Pliny the Elder’s Natural History A. Locher 4. The Perils of Patriotism: Pliny and Roman Medicine V. Nutton 5. Pharmacy in Pliny’s Natural History: Some Observations on Substances and Sources J. Scarborough 6. Pliny on Plants: His Place in the History of Botany A.G. Morton 7. Aspects of Pliny’s Zoology L. Bodson 8. Pliny on Mineralogy and Metals J.F. Healy 9. Chemical Tests in Pliny F. Greenaway 10. Some Astronomical Topics in Pliny G. Pedersen 11. Plinian Astronomy in the Middle Ages and Renaissance B.S. Eastwood 12. Pliny and Renaissance Medicine R.K. French
Biography
Roger French and Frank Greenaway
