70. Strassburg Clock and Globe of Conrad Dasypodius, 1574.
_From Schwilgué_ 174
71. Portrait of Peter Apianus. _From an old print_ 176
72. Globes of Philip Apianus, 1576. _From originals in K. B.
Hof- u. Staatsbibliothek, Munich_ 178
73. Silver-Gilt Globe of Gerhard Emmoser, 1573. _From original
in Metropolitan Museum, New York_ 180
74. Globe of George Roll and Johannes Reinhold, 1586. _From
original in Math. Phys. Salon, Dresden_ 182
75. Portrait of Tycho Brahe. _From an engraving by Kornenip_ 184
76. Interior of Tycho Brahe's Observatory at Uranienburg.
_From Blaeu's Atlas_ 186
77. Globus Magnus of Tycho Brahe, 1584. _From his Astronomiae
Instauratae Mechanica_ 188
78. L'Écuy Terrestrial Globe, ca. 1578. _From original in
National Library, Paris_ 190
79. Terrestrial Globe of Emery Molyneux, 1592. _From original
in Middle Temple, London_ 192
80. Anonymous Terrestrial Globe, ca. 1595. _From original in
Landesmuseum, Zürich_ 198
81. Globe-Goblet of Abraham Gessner, ca. 1600. _From original
in Wolfegg Castle, Wolfegg_ 200
82. Gold Globe-Goblet, ca. 1575. _From original in Metropolitan
Museum, New York_ 200
83. Ivory Terrestrial Globe of Antonio Spano, 1593. _From
original in Library of J. P. Morgan, New York_ 202
84. South Polar Region on Globe of Antonio Spano. _From
original in Library of J. P. Morgan, New York_ 204
84a. South Polar Region on Globe of Jodocus Hondius, 1600.
_From original in Library of Henry E. Huntington, New
York_ 204
85. Terrestrial Globe of Van Langren, 1612. _From original
in Royal Geographical Society, Amsterdam_ 208
86. Armillary Sphere of Antonio Santucci (?), ca. 1580.
_From original in Library of Henry E. Huntington,
New York_ 214
87. Celestial Globe of B. F., 1600. _From original in Math.
Phys. Salon, Dresden_ 216
CHAP. TAILPIECES PAGE
II. The Egyptian Gnomon. _From pen drawing_ 25
III. Arabic Celestial Globe. _From Dorn's illustration_ 34
V. Ship. _From early portolan chart_ 58
VI. Honter Globe. _From his Rudimenta cosmographica_ 93
VII. Portuguese Arms 145
VIII. Compass Rose. _From Martines Atlas, 1582_ 171
IX. Base of Apianus Globe, 1576 218
Foreword.
Hitherto there has not appeared in English a detailed historical
treatise on globes terrestrial and celestial. The publications are
somewhat numerous, it is true, in which a very general consideration has
been given to the uses of globes, including a reference to their
important structural features, and to the problems geographical and
astronomical in the solution of which they may be counted of service.
There are a few studies, critical and historical, touching certain
selected examples of the early globe maker's handiwork which can be
cited. Attention, for example, may here be directed to Sir Clements
Markham's valuable introduction to his excellent English translation of
Hues' 'Tractatus de Globis,' a work originally prepared for the purpose
of furnishing a description of the Molyneaux globes, in which
introduction he undertook "to pass in review the celestial and
terrestrial globes which preceded or were contemporaneous with the first
that were made in England (1592) so far as a knowledge of them has come
down to us," yet the learned author cites but a fraction of the many
globes referred to in the following pages. In Ravenstein's 'Behaim, His
Life and His Globe,' we have perhaps the most scholarly treatment of its
kind in any language, but the study is limited to the work of one man,
the maker of the oldest extant terrestrial globe, which is dated 1492.
The bibliographical list which is appended gives striking evidence that
there has been a more or less extended interest in the general subject
of the use and the construction of globes in France, in Germany, in
England, and in Italy. The author makes in this place special mention of
his indebtedness to the studies of the distinguished Italian scholar,
Professor Matteo Fiorini, adding that with some propriety his name might
have a place on the title-page. Had there not been a ready access to his
important works, had the Italian Geographical Society not so graciously
expressed to the author its willingness for the free use of as much of
his published investigations as might be desired, for which it stood in
the relation of sponsor publisher, a willingness which Fiorini himself
had assured to any who might have access to the printed results of his
studies within this field, the preparation of this work necessarily
would have extended over a considerable period of time. Special mention
must be made of his 'Sfere Terrestri e Celesti di Autore Italiano oppure
fatte o conservate in Italia,' and of his 'Sfere cosmografiche e
specialmente le Sfere Terrestri.' These works have been of very signal
value for the study of the Italian globes and globe makers. Not an
inconsiderable part of his descriptive details has been appropriated,
being given in free translation or in paraphrase, quotation marks having
been omitted. Special mention may also here be made of Sigmund Günther's
interesting little volume, which he titles 'Erd- und Himmelsgloben nach
dem italienischen Matteo Fiorinis frei bearbeitet.' This has been of
special value for its bibliographical references and for its short
chapters on globe-gore construction.
To attempt the listing, with description, of all globes known to have
been constructed from the earliest times to the close of the eighteenth
century, the latter being a somewhat arbitrary date, is pretentious. The
fact is fully appreciated that in many instances the description given
is all too brief. Many of the individual terrestrial globe maps of the
period in question, it should be especially noted, are of the greatest
historical and scientific value; but to have undertaken a more detailed
and a more critical study merely of those which may be called the most
important might well have demanded far more time and special research
than could have been fittingly allowed for a general survey such as has
here been planned; in such a course we should indeed have been led
afield from our purpose.
It had been thought when this study was first undertaken that perhaps as
many as one hundred existing examples might be located, and that in
addition to these not a few important references might be found to work
actually done but now lost. Instead of the one hundred, more than eight
hundred and fifty have been listed, and from the interesting experience
in collecting material for the work, the pleasurable hope is entertained
that the published record of this effort will be in some measure the
means of bringing to light not a score but scores of other examples.
Indulging this hope there have been added to each copy of the book a few
blank pages for the insertion of a reference to any not mentioned in the
following printed pages. The author begs in this connection to add an
expression of his grateful appreciation for any word which may be sent
to him concerning unmentioned examples, to the end that in a revised
edition such examples may be fittingly noted. The great war checked the
search for existing examples, and prevented the inclusion of many
illustrations which had been promised, but these were promises which
could not be fulfilled.
An attempt has been made, as before noted, to treat the subject
historically, beginning with the earliest references to the belief in a
spherical earth and a spherical firmament encircling it. It is not easy
to fix, with anything like a satisfactory measure of certainty, the
beginning of globe construction; very naturally it was not until a
spherical theory concerning the heavens and the earth had been accepted,
and for this we are led back quite to Aristotle and beyond, back indeed
to the Pythagoreans if not yet farther. We find allusions to celestial
globes in the days of Eudoxus and Archimedes, to terrestrial globes in
the days of Crates and Hipparchus. We find that the Greek geographer
Strabo gives us quite a definite word concerning their value and their
construction, and that Ptolemy is so definite in his references to them
as to lead to a belief that globes were by no means uncommon instruments
in his day, and that they were regarded of much value in the study of
geography and astronomy, particularly of the latter science. There is,
however, but one example known, which has come down to us from that
ancient day, this a celestial globe, which is noted below and briefly
described as the Farnese globe. It is of marble, and is thought by some
to date from the time of Eudoxus, that is, three hundred years before
the Christian era.
To the Mohammedans belongs chief credit for keeping alive an interest in
astronomical studies during the so-called Christian middle ages, and we
find them interested in globe construction, that is, in celestial globe
construction; so far as we have knowledge, it seems doubtful that they
undertook the construction of terrestrial globes.
Among the Christian peoples of Europe in this same period there was not
wanting an interest in both geography and astronomy. We are now learning
that those centuries were not entirely barren of a certain interest in
sciences other than theological. In Justinian's day, or near it, one
Leontius Mechanicus busied himself in Constantinople with globe
construction, and we have left to us his brief descriptive reference to
his work. With stress laid, during the many centuries succeeding, upon
matters pertaining to the religious life, there naturally was less
concern than there had been in the humanistic days of classical
antiquity as to whether the earth is spherical in form or flat like a
circular disc, nor was it thought to matter overmuch as to the form of
the heavens. Yet there was no century, not even in those ages we happily
are learning to call no longer dark, that geography and astronomy were
not studied and taught, and globes celestial as well as armillary
spheres, if not terrestrial globes, were constructed. The Venerable
Bede, Notker Labeo, Pope Sylvester I, the Emperor Frederick II, and King
Alfonso of Castile, not to name many others of perhaps lesser
significance, displayed an interest in globes and globe making.
The modern age opens with an interest in the expansion of Europe
overland eastward, with this interest soon to be followed by greater
enthusiasm in transoceanic expansion. With the rapidly increasing
knowledge concerning the hitherto unknown or but little known regions of
the earth came a desire for better map making, came an interest
intelligently directed in the construction of terrestrial globes on
which the newly discovered parts might be represented in their relative
positions as they are on the real spherical earth. To this interest
Martin Behaim gave striking expression, producing in the year 1492 his
famous "Erdapfel" referred to above as the oldest extant terrestrial
globe. His century closes with every evidence that the spherical theory,
as Aristotle had expressed it nearly two thousand years before, could
alone be accepted by geographers, and if spherical, the fact could be
most impressively taught by the use of a material representation, that
is, by means of a terrestrial globe.
The sixteenth century opened with a marvelously increased interest in
geography, the result of a climax reached through the transoceanic
discoveries in which Columbus led the way. If the makers of plane maps
became now increasingly active, so the makers of globes were becoming
increasingly numerous, and at first in the countries of trans-alpine
Europe. Globes of metal with engraved maps, as the Lenox and the
Jagellonicus copper spheres, globes with manuscript maps covering a
sphere of special composition, as were those of Schöner, globes in the
preparation of which engraved gore maps were employed; as the
Waldseemüller, the Boulengier, the Gemma, and the Mercator, make their
appearance in ever increasing numbers, the activity encouraged by
those interested in a scientific study of geography and astronomy, and
notably by seamen, in whose collection of navigator's instruments they
were long considered to be of the greatest importance.
How the globe interest in the several countries of Europe found
expression during the sixteenth, seventeenth, and eighteenth centuries
is fully set forth in the following pages, with something of an attempt
at a grouping and a classification of the results, to the end of making
more clear the trend of that interest, now quickened, now retarded, by
certain temporary or permanent national impulses.
It is especially interesting to note how a certain superiority in globe
making exhibited itself, now in one country, now in another, with a
lingering favor exhibited in Italy for the manuscript or the metal
globe, while in the North, globes with copper engraved gore maps found
increasing favor from the first, with a certain climax reached in the
Netherlands in the days of Hondius and Blaeu.
In the appended tabulated list of globes and globe makers, it will be
noted that the makers have been listed alphabetically, that the kind of
globe has been indicated, whether terrestrial, celestial or armillary
sphere, with the date given, though sometimes only approximately, and
with the diameter of each globe recorded in centimeters, so far as
obtainable with an acceptable degree of accuracy, fractions thereof
being omitted, these same measurements being repeated in the text
reference to each individual example or edition.
The author had been ambitious to include in his illustrations a
reproduction of each known example or edition, showing at least the
general appearance of each, but he fully realizes the more or less
unsatisfactory character of a small print, and the unsatisfactory
results of an attempt to photograph the curved surface of a sphere. Not
a few of the many examples would prove to be of the greatest interest
and scientific value could the entire map surface have been given in
reproduction and in size to be easily legible. It however can be readily
understood how such an undertaking was necessarily considered to be
unpractical. Out of the author's collection of about four hundred globe
photographs, a selection has been made of those which it has been
thought would be most suitable for illustrative purposes.
It is hoped that the preliminary study herewith presented may lead to a
number of independent and thorough investigations of important
individual examples, to the end of clearly setting forth their great
documentary value.
There have been added to the list of illustrations certain important
legends as they appear in the original, likewise a number of
contemporary portraits of the distinguished globe and map makers of the
last three centuries. In most instances important legends have been
cited in the text in the exact language of the original, to which, with
very few exceptions, a translation is added. The critical student will
occasionally be somewhat astounded at the incorrectness of the language,
Latin, Italian, Spanish, French or German, in the original. The
translations into English, not infrequently, have been made with
difficulty; accordingly it will be noted in some instances that the
translation is conjectural. No attempt has been made to correct errors;
on the contrary, the greatest care has been exercised to adhere
faithfully to the original as given by the map or globe maker.
The bibliographical list appended is full, but completeness is not
pretended. Practically all of the works cited have been consulted, and
care has been taken to include those held to be of the greatest
importance. It will at least serve as a working list for those students
who may wish to make further investigations within the field under
consideration.
An expression of sincerest thanks is here recorded to the very many
librarians, directors of museums, and private individuals who have so
graciously responded to requests for information concerning the globes
belonging to their several collections. The privilege so readily
conceded for photographing the several examples, and the time and
trouble expended in having this work of reproduction well done, are
nothing less than a striking evidence of the kindliest fraternal spirit
existing among those engaged in scientific and literary pursuits the
world over. To the requests presented even the antipodes have responded.
In concluding, the author might refer to his interest in globes as
dating from his early boyhood days, when, in that country school in
western Illinois, bearing the name Liberty, for it had been established
in the first years of the Civil War, he studied his geography and indeed
his astronomy lessons with the aid of a terrestrial globe and an orrery.
Can it be that we have revised our educational methods so far in this
country as practically to have eliminated the intelligent use of aids so
valuable in the study of the branches which globes concern? They enter
in fact but little into modern methods of instruction. If this work
could be made to encourage their extensive use, and serve in their
rehabilitation as aids of inestimable interest and value in geographical
and astronomical studies, it will have served the purpose which is most
pleasing to the author.
Chapter I
Terrestrial Globes in Antiquity
The beginnings of astronomical and of geographical
science.--Primitive attempts at map construction, as seen
in the Babylonian plan of the world.--Anaximander probably
the first scientific cartographer.--Statements of
Herodotus.--The place of Hecataeus, Hipparchus, Marinus,
Ptolemy.--The Romans as map makers.--The earliest beliefs
in a globular earth.--Thales, the Pythagoreans,
Aristotle.--Eratosthenes and his measurements of the
earth.--Crates probably the first to construct a
terrestrial globe.--Statements of Strabo.--Ptolemy's
statements concerning globes and globe construction.--The
allusions of Pliny.
The beginnings of the science of astronomy and of the science of
geography are traceable to a remote antiquity. The earliest records
which have come down to us out of the cradleland of civilization contain
evidence that a lively interest in celestial and terrestrial phenomena
was not wanting even in the day of history's dawning. The primitive
cultural folk of the Orient, dwellers in its great plateau regions, its
fertile valleys, and its desert stretches were wont, as we are told, to
watch the stars rise nightly in the east, sweep across the great vaulted
space above, and set in the west as if controlled in their apparent
movement by living spirits. To them this exhibition was one marvelous
and awe-inspiring. In the somewhat strange grouping of the stars they
early fancied they could see the forms of many of the objects about
them, of many of their gods and heroes, and we find their successors
outlining these forms in picture in their representations of the heavens
on the material spheres which they constructed. Crude and simple,
however, were their astronomical theories relative to the shape, the
structure, and the magnitude of the great universe in which they found
themselves placed.[1]
Then too, as stated, there was something of interest to the people of
that early day in the simple problems of geography; problems suggested
by the physical features of their immediate environment; problems
arising as they journeyed for trade or traffic, or the love of
adventure, to regions now near, now remote. Very ancient records tell us
of the attempts they made, primitive indeed most of them were, to sketch
in general outline small areas of the earth's surface, usually at first
the homeland of the map maker, but to which they added as their
knowledge expanded. The early Egyptians, for example, as we long have
known, made use of rough outline drawings (Fig. 1)[2] to represent
certain features of special sections of their country, and recently
discovered tablets in the lower Mesopotamian valley (Fig. 2)
interestingly show us how far advanced in the matter of map making the
inhabitants of that land were two thousand years before the Christian
era.[3] We are likewise assured, through references in the literature of
classical antiquity, that maps were made by the early Greeks and Romans,
and perhaps in great numbers as their civilization advanced, though none
of their productions have survived to our day. To the Greeks indeed
belongs the credit of first reducing geography and map making to a real
science.[4] No recent discovery by archaeologist or by historian,
interesting as many of their discoveries have been, seems to warrant an
alteration of this statement, long accepted as fact.
[Illustration: Fig. 1. Fragment Map of Egyptian Gold Mines.]
[Illustration: Fig. 2. Tablet Representing Babylonian World-Plan.]
The credit of being the first scientific cartographer has been generally
assigned to the Greek Anaximander of Miletus (610-547 B. C.).[5] While
there is not a detailed description extant of the maps he is reputed to
have made, we know that he accepted the so-called Homeric idea, that the
earth has the form of a circular disc,[6] and is surrounded by the Ocean
Stream, an idea generally approved by the Ionic School of
Philosophers.[7] It is not improbable that we have an allusion to the
work of Anaximander in the History of Herodotus (484-400? B. C.),
wherein we are told that Aristagoras, the tyrant of Miletus, when on a
mission to Cleomenes, the King of Sparta, carried with him "a copper
plate on which was engraved the whole circuit of the earth, and likewise
all the Seas and Rivers."[8] In another passage, Herodotus takes
occasion to criticise maps of this circular character. "I laugh," he
says, "when I see that, though many before this have drawn maps of the
Earth, yet no one has set the matter forth in an intelligent way; seeing
that they draw the Ocean flowing round the Earth, which is circular as
if drawn with compasses, and they make Asia equal in size to Europe. In
a few words I shall declare the size of each division and of what nature
it is as regards outline."[9] It is, however, interesting to observe
that the father of historical geography and of history nowhere records
his idea of a properly constructed map, and further that the circular
form, which he condemned, is one which found wide acceptance even to the
close of the middle ages.
We are not definitely informed as to just the course of improvement or
advancement in early scientific map making among the Greeks, yet not a
few names are known to us of those who made it a matter of special
endeavor, as they specifically stated, to improve the work of their
predecessors. We, for example, are told that Hecataeus (550-480 B.
C.),[10] likewise a native of Miletus, improved the maps of Anaximander,
and that scientists of his day were astonished at his results; that
Dicaearchus of Massina (350-290 B. C.)[11] was the first to employ a
central line of orientation on a map, one passing through the
Mediterranean east and west, and that he represented on his map all the
lands known since the expedition of Alexander the Great into the Far
East; and further, that Eratosthenes, the librarian of Alexandria
(276-196 B. C.),[12] was the first to attempt a representation of the
curved surface of the earth on a plane in accord with geometrical rules.
The scientific cartographical ideas of Eratosthenes were further
developed by Hipparchus (180-125 B. C.),[13] who is generally referred
to as the greatest astronomer of antiquity, and by Marinus of Tyre (fl.
ca. 100 A. D.),[14] who introduced the idea of inscribing lines of
latitude and longitude on a map, crossing the same at right angles,
which lines could be made to serve the useful purpose of orientation and
be of assistance in giving proper location to all known places on the
earth's surface.
Map making in that early period reached its climax in the work of
Claudius Ptolemy of Alexandria (ca. 87-150 A. D.).[15] His ideas,
however, seem not to have found general favor with his contemporaries,
nor with the geographers of the middle ages. (Fig. 3.) It was not until
the so-called period of great geographical discoveries and explorations
in the fifteenth century that he became a real teacher within his chosen
field.
[Illustration: Fig. 3. Ptolemy World Map.]
Map making and the science of geography were continuously progressive
among the Greeks. Imperial Rome witnessed little progress in either
field. Among those who wrote in the Latin language, Pomponius Mela (fl.
ca. 43 A. D.)[16] and Pliny (ca. 23-79 A. D.)[17] alone have rank of
importance. In the matter of map construction the Romans held to many of
the cruder methods and ideas of the Greeks, a fact which we learn from
the fragmentary references in their literature, and from the itinerary
or road maps (Fig. 4), of the period of the emperors, which have come
down to us.[18]
[Illustration: Fig. 4. Sections of Peutinger Tables.]
The idea of a globular earth was at first accepted by the geographers of
antiquity with some hesitancy. That Thales (640-548 B. C.),[19] one of
the earliest astronomers and cosmographers, openly supported this
theory, as is sometimes asserted, is hardly probable. It is rather to
be assumed that according to his idea the earth has the form of a
cylinder, and that it moves within a hollow sphere, an idea upheld by
Anaximander, his disciple and successor, to whom reference has been made
above. It was the Pythagorean philosophers who appear to have first
transferred to the earth that which had already been accepted as a
theory relative to the heavens, including the imaginary circles and the
circular or spherical form, apparently arguing that the earth is a
sphere because that is the most perfect form, that it is located in the
center of the universe because that is the place of honor, and that it
is at rest because rest is more dignified than motion.[20] It however
was Aristotle who undertook, in the manner of a philosopher, an
elaborate defense of the Pythagorean doctrine of a globular earth,
supporting his arguments, first, through a reference to such positive
proof as may be found in gravitation or "the tendency of all particles
of matter to form themselves about the middle and thus make a sphere,"
and secondly, through a reference to the appearance of the earth's
shadow cast during an eclipse of the moon.[21] A third proof, so
familiar to us today, that distant objects as we approach them gradually
reveal themselves above the horizon, seems not to have occurred to
Aristotle, but was first employed by Strabo. "It is evident," says the
latter, "that, when persons on shipboard are unable to see at a distance
lights which are on a level with the eye, the cause of this is the
curvature of the sea; for if those lights are raised to a higher level,
they become visible, even though the distance is increased; and in like
manner, if the beholder attains a greater elevation he sees what was
previously hidden.... Again, when men are approaching the land from the
sea, the parts nearest the shore-line come more and more into view, and
objects which at first appeared low attain a greater elevation."[22]
After the attempt had been made to determine the circumference of the
earth, as was done by Eratosthenes with more or less satisfactory
results, the thought, very naturally, was suggested of making an
artificial representation of the entire earth, so far as then
understood, that is, of making a terrestrial globe. There is no
intimation, however, in any early allusion to Eratosthenes that he was a
globe maker, or that he knew anything about globe construction. We know
that he thought of the earth as a sphere placed in the center of the
universe, around which the celestial sphere revolves every twenty-four
hours.[23] Strabo, at a much later date, in referring to the
geographical ideas of Eratosthenes, censured him for his unnecessarily
elaborate proofs of the earth's spherical character, apparently thinking
the fact one too well known to require demonstration.
[Illustration: Fig. 5. Globe according to Crates.]
It appears to have been the grammarian Crates of Mallos, a contemporary
of Hipparchus, and a member of the Stoic School of Philosophers, who
made the first attempt to construct a terrestrial globe (Fig. 5), and
that he exhibited the same in Pergamum, not far from the year 150 B.
C.[24] It seems to have been Crates' idea that the earth's surface, when
represented on a sphere, should appear as divided into four island-like
habitable regions. On the one hemisphere, which is formed by a
meridional plane cutting the sphere, lies our own oecumene or habitable
world, and that of the Antoecians in corresponding longitude and in
opposite latitude; on the other hemisphere lies the oecumene of the
Perioecians in our latitude and in opposite longitude, and that of the
Antipodes in latitude and longitude opposite to us.[25] Through the
formulation and expression of such a theory the idea of the existence of
an antipodal people was put forth as a speculative problem, an idea
frequently discussed in the middle ages, and settled only by the actual
discovery of antipodal regions and antipodal peoples in the day of great
transoceanic discoveries.[26] That Strabo, at a later date, had this
Pergamenian example in mind when stating certain rules to be observed in
the construction of globes seems probable, since he makes mention of
Crates' globe. Strabo alone among ancient writers, so far as we at
present know, treats of terrestrial globes, practically such as we find
in use at the present day. He thought that a globe to be serviceable
should be of large size, and his reasoning can readily be understood,
for what at that time was really known of the earth's surface was small
indeed in comparison with what was unknown. Should one not make use of a
sphere of large dimensions, the habitable regions (Fig. 6), in
comparison with the earth's entire surface, would occupy but small
space. What Strabo states in his geography is interesting and may here
well be cited. "Whoever would represent the real earth," he says, "as
near as possible by artificial means, should make a sphere like that of
Crates, and upon this draw the quadrilateral within which his chart of
geography is to be placed. For this purpose however a large globe is
necessary since the section mentioned, though but a very small portion
of the entire sphere, must be capable of containing properly all the
regions of the habitable earth and of presenting an accurate view of
them to those who wish to consult it. Any one who is able will certainly
do well to obtain such a globe. But it should have a diameter of not
less than ten feet; those who can not obtain a globe of this size, or
one nearly as large, had better draw their charts on a plane surface of
not less than seven feet. Draw straight lines for the parallels, and
others at right angles to these. We can easily imagine how the eye can
transfer the figure and extent (of these lines) from a plane surface to
one that is spherical. The meridians of each country on the globe have a
tendency to unite in a single point at the poles; nevertheless on the
surface of a plane map there would be no advantage if the right lines
alone which should represent the meridians were drawn slightly to
converge."[27]
[Illustration: Fig. 6. Globe according to Strabo.]
It is not at all improbable that Strabo and Ptolemy made considerable
advance in the practical construction of terrestrial globes, for it
seems reasonable to conclude that they were in possession of such
objects when writing, as they did, concerning them.
Ptolemy, we may note, expressly allowed that the size of a globe should
be that which one might desire, and that it was not necessary it should
be of large size. It was this great Alexandrian cosmographer who first
demonstrated the scientific value of drawing on the surface of a globe
or map the network of parallels and meridians, and of establishing by
means of the two geographical coördinates the true geographical position
of every known place. To the end of making globes more serviceable he
suggested the use of a meridian circle, such as is today employed in
globe construction, passing through both poles, within which circle the
globe might be made to move freely on its axis. He, however, in this
connection, did not give technical directions for the construction of
terrestrial globes, but he says enough to assure us that the art of
globe construction was measurably well understood in his day, and that
the Greeks and the Romans considered them very useful instruments in the
study of the heavens and the earth.[28]
The allusions of the naturalist Pliny (23-79) to the spherical shape of
the earth give us no particular intimation that he knew of the existence
of terrestrial globes, but they are interesting as indicating a belief
of his time in its spherical form, a belief, judging from the nature of
the argument, apparently drawn from Aristotle. Referring to the shape of
the earth, he observes that "everyone agrees it has the most perfect
figure. We always speak of the ball of the earth, and we admit it to be
a globe bounded by the poles. It has not indeed the form of an absolute
sphere, from the number of lofty mountains and flat plains; but if the
termination of the lines be bound by a curve, this would compose a
perfect sphere. And this we learn from arguments drawn from the nature
of things, although not from the same considerations which we have made
use of with respect to the heavens. For in the heavens the hollow
convexity everywhere bends on itself and leans upon the earth as a
center, whereas the earth rises up solid and dense like something that
swells up and is protruded outward. The heavens bend toward the center,
while the earth goes out from the center, the continual rolling of the
heavens about it forcing its immense mass into the form of a
sphere."[29]
NOTES
[1] Most of the larger general works presenting an
historical survey of the science of astronomy give
consideration to its beginnings, noting the interest in the
subject exhibited by the early Egyptians, Assyrians,
Babylonians, and by other Eastern peoples. See the
introductory pages of such works as Dalambre, M. Histoire de
l'astronomie ancienne. Paris, 1817; Lockyer, J. N. The Dawn
of Astronomy. New York, 1894; Allan, H. A. Star Names and
their Meanings; Wolf, R. Geschichte der Astronomie. München,
1877; Mädler, J. H. Geschichte der Himmelskunde von den
ältesten bis auf die neuste Zeit. Braunschweig, 1873. 2
vols.; Narrien, J. N. An Historical Account of Origin and
Progress of Astronomy. London, 1833.
[2] Chabas, F. Ouvres diverses publiées par G. Maspero.
Paris, 1902. Tome deuxième, Plate II, p. 208, "Carte
Egyptienne de mines d'or."
[3] Cuneiform Texts from Babylonian Tablets, etc., in
British Museum. London, 1906. Vol. 22, Plate 48. This
Babylonian plan of the world illustrates the idea concerning
the world which was current in the late Babylonian period.
It represents the region of Babylonia, Assyria, and the
neighboring districts as a circular plain surrounded by the
Persian Gulf (Ma-ra-tum). The city Babylon (Babylu) is
indicated near the center, and next to it the land of
Assyria (Ashshur). The position of certain other cities is
indicated. The district toward the south, bordering the
Persian Gulf, is represented as being full of canals and
marshes. Toward the north is marked a district which is
referred to as mountainous. Beyond the circle is represented
the Persian Gulf, and a number of triangles pointing outward
from the circular zone, each being labeled "region,"
indicating a vague conception concerning the same.
[4] Numerous works have been published referring to the
geography of the ancients. Mention may here be made of the
following as being important. In each may be found extensive
bibliographical references. Berger, H. Geschichte der
wissenschaftlichen Erdkunde der Griechen. Leipzig,
1887-1894. This work was issued in four parts. Forbiger, A.
Handbuch der alten Geographie nach den Quellen bearbeitet.
Hamburg, 1877; Schmidt, M. C. P. Zur Geschichte der
geographischen Litteratur bei den Griechen und Römern.
Berlin, 1887; Bunbury, E. H. History of Ancient Geography.
London, 1883. 2 vols.; Tozer, H. F. A History of Ancient
Geography. Cambridge, 1897. See also The History of
Herodotus; The Geography of Strabo; The Natural History of
Pliny; The Geography of Ptolemy.
[5] Schmidt, op. cit., p. 12; Bunbury, op. cit., Vol. I, p.
122; Berger, op. cit., pt. 1, pp. 8-14.
[6] Iliad, XVIII, 446-447; XXI, 225-228; Odyssey, V, 282;
XII, 380.
[7] They indulged much in speculation concerning the
physical constitution of the world.
[8] Herodotus. Historia. Bk. V, chap. 49. Citation from
translation by Macaulay, G. C. The History of Herodotus.
London, 1890. 2 vols.
[9] Herodotus, op. cit., Bk. IV, chap. 8, 36; II, 21, 23.
[10] Bunbury, op. cit., Vol. I, chap. v; Schmidt, op. cit.,
p. 13; Berger, op. cit., pt. 1.
[11] Cicero. Epistolae ad Atticum. vi. 2; Bunbury, op. cit.,
Vol. I, p. 617.
[12] Berger, op. cit., pt. 3; Bunbury, op. cit., Vol. I,
chap. xvi.
[13] Berger, op. cit., pt. 3; Bunbury, op. cit., Vol. II,
chap. xvii, sec. 1.
[14] Bunbury, op. cit., Vol. II, chap. xxvi. Marinus is
known to us only at second-hand. Ptolemy extols him in the
highest terms, but he undertook to reform his maps just as
Marinus had undertaken to reform the maps of his
predecessors.
[15] Bunbury, op. cit., Vol. II, chaps. xxviii-xxix;
Mollweide, S. Die Mappierungskunst des Ptolemaus. (In: Zachs
Monatliche Korrespondence zur Beförderung der Erd- und
Himmelskunde. Weimar. Bd. 11, pp. 322 ff.); Nordenskiöld, A.
E. Facsimile Atlas. Stockholm, 1889. This last-named work
gives consideration to the Atlas of Ptolemy, to the numerous
editions of his Geographia, to his geographical errors. The
twenty-seven maps printed in the 1490 Rome edition of the
Atlas are reproduced. See also the printed lists of the
editions of Ptolemy's Atlas by Eames, W., Winsor, J.,
Philipps, P. L.
[16] Bunbury, op. cit., Vol. II, chap. xxviii, sec. 2; Fink.
Mela und seine Geographie. Rosenheim, 1881. Mela titled his
work, "De situ orbis." Excellent tr. into English by
Golding, Arthur. London, 1585. Various printed editions,
first in 1471.
[17] Bunbury, op. cit., Vol. II, chap. xxiv. Various
editions of original; various English translations. Pliny
titled his work, "Naturalis historia."
[18] Miller, K. Die Weltkarte des Castorius, genannt
Peutingersche Tafel. Ravensburg, 1887; Porena, F. Orbis
pictus d'Agrippa. Roma, 1883; Desjardins, E. La Table de
Peutinger d'après l'original conservé à Vienne. Paris, 1896.
[19] Lewis, G. C. Historical survey of the Astronomy of the
Ancients. London, 1862. pp. 80 ff.; Berger, op. cit., pt. 1.
[20] Bunbury, op. cit., Vol. I, chap. iv, secs. 4, 5.
[21] A scientific foundation for the spherical theory seems
not to antedate Aristotle. See especially his work, De
Coelo, Bk. II, chap. 14, and for a good translation of this
work by Taylor, T., bearing title, On the Heavens, from the
Greek with copious elucidations. London, 1807. Plato's
statement in Phaedo merely observes that the earth, if like
a ball, must be suspended without support in the interior of
a hollow sphere. See also the Book of Job, chap. xxvi, v. 7,
where reference is made to the earth hanging upon nothing.
There is here probably the expression of an early Assyrian
or Babylonian belief in a spherical earth.
[22] Strabo. Geographia. Bk. I, chap. 1, §20. See
translation by Jones, H. L. The Geography of Strabo. New
York, 1917. 8 vols.
[23] Bunbury, op. cit., Vol. I, pp. 619-620.
[24] Wachsmuth, C. De Cratte Mallota. Leipzig, 1860; Berger,
H. Entwickelung der Geographie der Erdkugel bei den
Hellenen. (In: Grenzboten, Vol. xxxiv, pp. 408 ff.);
Müllenhoff, C. (In: Deutsche alterthumskunde. Berlin, 1895.
p. 248.) Diodorus Siculus attributes the discovery of the
use of the globe to Atlas of Libya.
[25] Berger. Geschichte, pt. 2, p. 135; Friedrich, R.
Materialien zur Begriffsbestimmung des Orbis Terrarum.
Leipzig, 1887.
[26] A belief in the existence of antipodal peoples, very
clearly was accepted by Pythagoras, Eratosthenes, Crates,
Posidonius, Aristotle, Strabo, and later by Capella.
Numerous others presupposed the earth to be globular in
shape. See Kretschmer, K. Die physische Erdkunde im
christlichen Mittelalter. Wien, 1889. pp. 54-59, wherein the
author gives consideration to the doctrine of the antipodes
as held in the middle ages. Berger. Geschichte, pt. 3, p.
129, notes that the idea of the earth's division into four
parts or quarters persisted for centuries after Crates' day,
if not among scientific geographers, at least among those
who could be said to have possessed general culture.
Cleomedes, Ampelius, Nonnus, and Eumenius mention the idea
as one to be accepted. See in this connection the world map
of Macrobius, a reproduction of which may be found in
Nordenskiöld, op. cit., pl. XXXI. See also Miller, K. Die
Weltkarte des Beatus, 776 nach Christus. Stuttgart, 1895. p.
28.
It was thought that Africa did not extend to the equator, or
at least was not habitable to the equator. Below the equator
there was thought to be water but beyond the uninhabitable
and impassable torrid zone a habitable region. The map of
Lambertus well represents this early theory. Pomponius Mela
called the inhabitants of this southern region
"Antichthoni," their country being unknown to us because of
the torrid zone intervening. Pliny, and after him Solinus,
says that for a long time the island of Taprobana (Ceylon)
was thought to be the region occupied by the Antichthoni.
[27] Strabo, op. cit., Bk. II, chap. v, §10.
[28] Ptolemy. Geographia. Bk. I, chap. 22.
[29] Pliny, op. cit., Bk. II, chap. 64; Bk. II, chap. 2.
Chapter II
Celestial Globes in Antiquity
Thales' ideas, probably not a globe maker.--Eudoxus.--The
Atlante Farnese.--Archimedes.--Allusion of
Lactantius.--Pappus' allusions.--Armillary spheres.--The
astronomer Hipparchus.--Ptolemy.--Globes used for
decorative purposes by the Romans.--Roman coins.--The
Byzantine Leontius Mechanicus.
Though we find but an occasional reference to terrestrial globes in the
literature of classical antiquity, numerous statements appear therein
which assure us that celestial globes, solid balls as well as armillary
spheres, were constructed in those early centuries, for both practical
and ornamental purposes. There exists, however, considerable uncertainty
as to the exact character of the earliest of these globes.
The information we have concerning the Ionic School of Philosophers, of
which school Thales is reputed to have been the founder, does not give
us any satisfactory evidence that attempts were made by any of their
number at a material representation of their astronomical or
geographical theories. They were content, in the main, with mere
philosophical or cosmical speculations. The statement, therefore, that
Thales himself constructed a celestial globe, on which to represent his
notion of the crystal sphere, is not well authenticated.[30]
While not assured to us by any positive statement, there appears to be
good reason for believing the astronomer Eudoxus of Cnidos (409-356 B.
C.) made use of a celestial globe on which to represent certain
astronomical theories which he entertained.[31] He traveled in Egypt in
his later life, where he carried on his studies, and where he seems to
have learned the construction of star catalogues. On his return to his
own country he is reported to have undertaken the representation of the
several constellations known to him, on a celestial sphere. The
astronomical poem of Aratus (fl. 270 B. C.),[32] so frequently cited and
copied in following centuries, is considered to be a description of the
constellations according to Eudoxus.
In the Royal Museum of Naples there may be found a large marble
celestial globe, 65 cm. in diameter (Fig. 7), which the mythical Atlas
bears on his shoulders, the statue itself being 1.86 m. in height,
resting on one knee.[33] This very interesting and artistic object was
transferred to Naples museum from the Farnese Palace in Rome, hence is
generally referred to as the Atlante Farnesiano. Forty-two
constellations are represented on its surface (Fig. 8), and the five
wanting, including Ursa Major and Ursa Minor, probably owe their absence
to the obliteration which time has brought about. From the position of
the several constellations, relative to the intersecting points of the
ecliptic with the equator, it is thought that it must have been
constructed at least three hundred years before the Christian era. It
seems therefore to date from about the time of Eudoxus, being then the
oldest extant globe.
[Illustration: Fig. 7. Atlante Farnese, ca. 200 B. C.]
[Illustration: Fig. 8. Atlante Farnese Constellation Figures.]
We learn from Cicero and from other early writers that Archimedes (ca.
287-212 B. C.), the celebrated geometrician of Syracuse, constructed a
globe or contrivance for the purpose of demonstrating the movements of
the heavenly bodies. Cicero's statements imply that the work of
Archimedes was well known in his day, yet he thought it merited a
special word of commendation from himself. "I shall propose nothing new
to you," he says, "nor that which I have invented or discovered; but I
remember C. Sulpicius Gallus, a very learned man, as you know, when this
appearance (in the heavens) was spoken of, and he was, by chance, at
the house of Marcellus, who had been consul with him, he described a
globe among the spoils of that opulent and magnificent city of Syracuse,
when captured, as the only thing among all the spoils which he ordered
to be carried to his own house; about which globe I have often heard, on
account of the fame of Archimedes, although the work itself was not very
remarkable, for there was another far more beautiful and more honored by
the common people, made by the same Archimedes, and placed in the Temple
of Virtue by the same Marcellus. But afterward when Gallus began to
explain scientifically the object of the machine, I thought there was
more ingenuity in that Sicilian than human nature was capable of. For
Gallus informed me that there was another ancient invention of a solid
and elaborately formed globe which was made by Thales, the Milesian, to
revolve. And afterward the same was, by Eudoxus of Cnidos, the disciple
of Plato, adorned with the fixed stars of heaven, and with every
ornament and embellishment, as described by Eudoxus, and was many years
afterward celebrated by Aratus, not exactly in the scientific language
of astronomy, but with the graces of poetry. This species of globe
indeed, in which the sun and moon were made to revolve, and five of
those stars which have been called travelers, and as it were wanderers,
could not possibly be exhibited on that solid sphere. And more
especially was that invention of Archimedes to be admired, for he had so
contrived that one revolution of the machine served somehow to produce
unequal and varied movements through their different paths. For when
Gallus set the globe in motion, the moon succeeded the sun by as many
turns of the brass wheel of the machine as days in the heavens, so that
the globe represented in the heavens the same eclipse of the sun, when
the moon arrived at a certain place or point, as the shadow of the earth
did when the sun shone from the opposite region."[34]
Lactantius' allusion to Archimedes, at a later date, is perhaps derived
from Cicero, but it is none the less interesting as indicating a belief
that such a globe had existed. In his characteristic vein he refers to
the mechanical device, finding therein a support for his theological
arguments. "Was Archimedes of Sicily able to contrive a likeness and
representation of the universe in hollow brass," he inquires, "in which
he so arranged the sun and moon, that they effected, as it were every
day, motions unequal and resembling the revolutions of the heavens, and
that sphere, while it revolved, exhibited not only the approaches and
with drawings of the sun or the increase and waning of the moon, but
also the unequal course of the stars, whether fixed or wandering? Was it
then impossible for God to plan and create the original, when the skill
of man was able to represent them by imitation? Would the stoic,
therefore, if he should have seen the figures of the stars painted and
fashioned in that brass, say that they moved by their own design, and
not by the genius of the artificer?"[35] Günther notes that at the
beginning of the seventh book of the collection of Pappus, geometrician
of Alexandria, may be found a reference to those skilled in mechanical
devices in which it is stated that "Mechanicians are those who
understand how to construct celestial globes and to represent the
heavens and the course of the stars moving in circles by means of like
circular movements of water."[36] It has been thought that in this
passage we have a reference to a globe such as was probably constructed
by Archimedes, although the reference is not to any particular example.
It seems not improbable that the globe of Archimedes was made to revolve
by an hydraulic contrivance, and that it resembled a planetarium or
orrery.[37] That the science of hydrostatics had been developed by
Archimedes' time to a high degree is very certain.
Instruments for measuring angles and distances were very early employed
in the field of astronomy as well as in the field of geography. Of
these instruments the Egyptian _gnomon_ appears to have been the
oldest.[38] In its best form it consisted of a bowl having a
perpendicular rod or staff erected at the central point of the inner
curved surface. This rod cast a shadow upon the inner surface of the
bowl, which had been graduated, giving a reading in degrees which
furnished to the observer the information desired. Time brought
improvements and variations in the construction of simple instruments of
this character. As early as the third century before the Christian era,
adjustable rings, or armillae, for example, were employed by astronomers
to aid them in the solution of their problems, which instruments later
developed, as noted below, into the more elaborate and complex armillary
spheres. The simplest form of such an instrument appears to have been
but a single graduated circle. To this, at a very early date, a second
was added, thus providing an instrument in which one of the circles was
regarded as fixed in the plane of the equator, the other, intersecting
this at right angles, served as a meridian circle, being movable around
an axis which could be called the world axis, the axis of the celestial
sphere, or the axis of the universe. The position of a celestial body in
declination could be determined on the meridian circle, and its right
ascension on the fixed or horizon circle.[39] It seems altogether
probable that Eratosthenes made use of such an instrument in his efforts
to measure the obliquity of the ecliptic. He tells us that in his time
one of large dimensions hung in the portico of the academy of
Alexandria.[40] With the addition of other circles, and of an adjustable
view-tube, that more accurate and detailed measurements might be made,
this device, in Hipparchus' day, came to be known as an astrolabe, and,
after the addition of other rings in later years, to be known as an
armillary sphere. Even in this last development it was not a true sphere
on which could be represented the starry constellations, but an
arrangement of circles forming a sort of imaginary sphere, the circles
being intended to represent the relative position of the principal
celestial circles. This instrument seems, at first, to have been
suspended, when in use, but later was made to rest upon a base, the
whole adjusted to revolve around an axis and within a graduated horizon
circle. In the earliest examples, the earth at the center of the
circles, it represented the Ptolemaic system (Fig. 9); in the later
examples, having the sun at the center, it represented the Copernican
system.
[Illustration: Fig. 9. Armillary Sphere according to Ptolemy.]
It is expressly stated by Ptolemy that a celestial globe was constructed
by Hipparchus, who is reputed to have been the founder of spherical
trigonometry,[41] and Pliny tells us that Hipparchus was the inventor of
the astrolabe,[42] which statement probably means that he greatly
improved the simple armillae used at an earlier date as an instrument
for astronomical calculations.
Ptolemy, in his 'Syntaxis,' or 'Almagest' as it was called by the Arabs,
devoted a chapter to the method of constructing, and to the use of the
astrolabe, which must have closely resembled the armillary sphere,
describing therein, in terms not altogether easy of comprehension, its
several rings and cylinders, and the method of adjusting the same for
purposes of determining the latitude and the longitude of celestial
bodies. He tells us also how to construct a representation of the sphere
of the fixed stars by means of a solid ball, how to place thereon the
several constellations, and how to use the same in the study of
astronomical problems. Such a globe, he says, "should be of a dark
color, that it might resemble the night and not the day." His
description is detailed as to the proper method of procedure in marking
the position of the celestial circles on this globe, in arranging the
movable rings of "hard and well polished material," in graduating the
rings and adjusting them to move about an axis which is likewise an axis
of the globe proper. In marking the position of the fixed stars, we are
told that the proper method is to commence at some constant and
invariable point of a certain constellation, and he suggests that the
best starting point is the fixed star in Canis Major, that is, the
so-called dog star, or Sirius. "The position of the other fixed stars,
as they follow in the list, could easily be determined," he says, "by
making the globe to turn upon the poles of the zodiac, thus bringing the
graduated circle to the proper point of each. The stars could be marked
with yellow or with such other color as one might choose, having due
regard for their brilliancy and magnitude. The outline of each of the
constellations should be made as simple as possible, indicating with
light strokes, differing but little in color from that of the surface of
the globe, the figures which the stars in the several constellations
represent, preserving in this manner the chief advantage of such
representation, which should be to make the several stars very prominent
without destroying, by a variety of color, the resemblance of the object
to the truth. It will be easy to make and to retain a proper comparison
of the stars if we represent upon the sphere the real appearance or
magnitude of the several stars. While neither the equator nor the
tropics can be represented on the globe, it will not be difficult to
ascertain the proper position of these circles. The first could be
thought of as passing through that point on the graduated meridian
circle which is 90 degrees from the poles. The points on this meridian
circle 23 degrees 51 minutes (_sic_) each side of the equator will
indicate the position of the tropics, that toward the north the summer
solstitial circle, that toward the south the winter solstitial circle.
With the revolution of the globe from east to west, as each star passes
under the graduated meridian circle, we should be able to ascertain
readily its distance from the equator or from the tropics."[43]
That the Romans especially interested themselves in globes, either
celestial or terrestrial, is not at all probable, because of their very
practical inclinations. There is evidence, however, that in the time of
the emperors celestial globes were constructed, especially in the
studios of sculptors, but these were made largely for decorative
purposes, having therefore an artistic rather than a scientific value.
In the year 1900 there was found in a villa at Bosco Reale, not far from
Pompeii, an interesting fresco (Fig. 10), this being acquired by the
Metropolitan Museum of New York in the year 1903. It has been referred
to as a sundial, but was clearly intended to represent, in outline, a
globe exhibiting the prominent parallels and a certain number of the
meridians. It is not at all improbable that such subjects were
frequently selected for wall or floor decoration.[44] It appears that
astrologers at times made use of globes in forecasting events.[45] It
may further be noted that on certain early Roman coins there may be
found the representation of a globe (Figs. 11, 12), which perhaps had as
its prime significance the representation of universal dominion.[46]
[Illustration: Fig. 10. Bosco Reale Roman Fresco, ca. 50 A. D.]
[Illustration: Fig. 11. Greek and Roman Coins.]
[Illustration: Fig. 12. Roman Gems.]
Not until the day of the Byzantine Emperors do we meet with a real
scholar who made a particular study of such astronomical apparatus,
apparatus which he describes in a special treatise. Among historical
scholars the work of Leontius Mechanicus seems not to have found the
recognition which it deserves.[47] He appears to have been a practical
man, very active within the field concerning which he wrote, and from
his remarkably detailed description we are able to learn something of
the extent to which globe technique was carried in the days of the early
Eastern Emperors. We at any rate learn from him that globes were
constructed in his workshop, which globes, in all important respects,
were like those in use at the present time, being, for example, provided
with a meridian circle adjusted to move through notches in a horizon
circle. The information given us by Leontius, which here follows, is in
free translation or paraphrase of his treatise, the whole being
condensed. He appears to have been a student of astronomy, as
represented by Aratus, for he tells us that he had endeavored to
construct a globe on which the constellations and the circles could be
made to conform to the records of the ancient poet astronomer. He tells
us further that he constructed this globe for Elpidius, an estimable man
of letters, and one full of zeal for study; that at the time of its
construction, though he had the leisure, he did not prepare a
description of the globe, but on the insistence of his friends such
description he now proposed to write. This appears to be the _raison
d'être_ for his treatise. The importance of adhering closely to the
statements of Aratus he insists upon, though admitting that writer's
errors, being convinced that most of the globes of which one had
knowledge in his day agreed neither with him nor with Ptolemy. Leontius
first directs attention to Aratus' threefold plan in describing the
several constellations, in which description that author speaks first of
the relation which part bears to part in each; second, of the position
of each constellation relative to the celestial circles, as, for
example, to the tropics, and third, its position in the heavens relative
to the constellations in the zodiac. He follows this statement with a
somewhat lengthy reference to the constellation Ophiuchus, or the
Serpent, in explanation of the method of description. After having the
surface of the globe portioned out for the representation of the several
constellations and the important circles, he then proceeds, as he
states, to consider the execution, by which he means representing in
proper color and outline the several figures, and the mounting of the
globe. Upon a properly constructed support should first be placed the
horizon circle, through which a second circle should be made to pass;
this second circle will serve as a meridian. These circles, he observes,
will enclose the ball, all the points of the surface of which should be
equally distant from the inner surface of the horizon and meridian
circles, that is, there should be a perfect adjustment of the enclosing
rings and the enclosed ball. The surface of the sphere should be painted
a dark color, as, for example, azure. He sets forth, with considerable
detail, the proper method of procedure in locating the several
principal circles, each of which should be graduated. The zodiac
should be divided into twelve parts, and the constellations belonging to
each of the several parts should be designated by name, beginning with
Cancer, following this with Leo, Virgo, and so on, one after the other.
In giving the globe a position which actually conforms to the world, the
pole should be set to the north, and the movement of the sky can then be
imitated by turning the globe to the left. Leontius, by way of summary
and definition, at the conclusion of his treatise, speaks of a sphere as
a solid having a surface, from all the points of which, if straight
perpendicular lines of equal length be drawn, they will reach a point
within called the center. This center in the great sphere of the
universe is the earth. The poles of the sphere are the extremities of
the axis on which it turns. The horizon cuts the sphere into two
hemispheres, the one superior and the other inferior to the earth. The
sky, which is continually turning, encircles all, one half of it being
above, the other below the earth, which is as far removed from the
superior part of the heavens as from the inferior.[48]
NOTES
[30] Cicero's allusion to Thales, cited p. 16, is probably a
reference to a tradition.
[31] Wolf, R. Geschichte der Astronomie. München, 1877, p.
193; Gassendi, P. Opera Omnia. Leipzig, 1658. Vol. V, p.
375. See statement by Cicero, cited below, p. 17.
[32] Aratus' poem bore the title, "Phaenomena." See, for an
excellent edition of this poem, Prince, C. L. Phenomena. A
literal translation of the astronomy and meteorology of
Aratus. Lewes, 1895. In his "Bibliographical remarks," the
translator refers to one hundred and nineteen editions of
this poem, dating from the first printed at Bonn in the year
1474. See also n. 19 (48), below.
[33] Passeri, G. B. Atlas Farnesianus Marmoreus insigne
vetustatis monumentum. (In: Gori, A. F. Thesaurus gemmarum
antiquarum astriferarum. Firenze, 1750. Vol. III.); Denza,
P. F. Globi celesti della Specola Vaticana. (In:
Publicazioni della Specola Vaticana. Torino, 1894. pp.
xx-xxiii.)
[34] Cicero. De Republica. Bk. I, chap. xiv. The citation is
from the translation by Hardingham, G. G. The Republic.
London, 1884.
[35] Lactantius. Institutiones divinae. Bk. II, chap. v.
[36] Pappus. Collectionum mathematicarum. Edited by
Commandino. Urbino, 1588. Bk. VII. See especially the
introduction.
[37] Hultsch, F. Über den Himmelsglobus des Archimedes. (In:
Zeitschrift für Mathematik und Physik. Leipzig, 1878. Bd.
22. Hist. Litt. Abteilung, p. 106.); Same author.
"Archimedes." (In: Real-encyklopädie der klassischen
Alterthumswissenschaft.)
[38] Wolf, op. cit., pp. 122-124.
[39] Wolf, op. cit., pp. 160-166.
[40] Wolf, op. cit., p. 130.
[41] Ptolemy, C. Syntaxis. (Almagest.) Various editions. Bk.
VII, chap. 1. This work was first printed in Venice, 1496;
the first Greek text in Basel, 1538. See Hues, Tractatus de
Globis, for an analysis of this work.
[42] Pliny. Historia Naturalis.
[43] Ptolemy, op. cit., Bk. V, chap. i; Bk. VII, chap. v;
Bk. VIII, chap. iii. Ptolemy mentions by name forty-eight
constellations, all of which he probably obtained from the
earlier Greeks. These constellations, the names being still
retained, are:
_The Zodiac._
Aries Cancer Libra Capricornus
Taurus Leo Scorpio Aquarius
Gemini Virgo Sagittarius Pisces
_The Northern Hemisphere._
Andromeda Corona Lyra Ursa Major
Aquila Cygnus Ophiuchus Ursa Minor
Auriga Delphinus Pegasus Sagitta
Boötes Draco Perseus
Cassiopeia Equuleus Serpens
Cepheus Hercules Triangulum
_The Southern Constellations._
Ara Cetus Crater Lupus
Argo Navis Centaurus Eridanus Orion
Canis Major Corona Australis Hydra Piscis Australis
Canis Minor Corvus Lepus
[44] Visconte, P. E. Nota intorno ad un' antico globo
celeste scolpito in marmo porino. Roma, 1835; Gaedechens, R.
Der marmorne Himmelsglobus des fürstlich Waldechschen
Antikenkabinettes zu Arolsen. Göttingen, 1862.
[45] Schanz, M. Geschichte der römischen Litteratur bis zum
Gesetzgebungswerk des Kaisers Justinian. München, 1890. See
p. 75 for a reference to the astrologer Nigidius Figulus.
[46] Coins on which there appears a representation of a
globe were numerous. Attention may also here be called to
the imperial insignia, a part of which was a globe, which
the emperor was represented, in the pictures of the day, as
holding in his hand. See King, C. W. Antique Gems and Rings.
Vol. II, plates xxvi and xxxviii.
[47] Weidler, J. F. Historia astronomiae. Vitembergae, 1741.
This author is of the opinion that Leontius lived in the
eighth century, p. 201; Susemihl. Geschichte der
Griechischen Litteratur der alexandriner Zeit. Leipzig,
1891. See Vol. I, p. 294, for a statement of the belief that
Leontius lived in the seventh century.
[48] Halma, N. Les Phenoménes d'Aratus de Soles, et de
Germanicus Cesar; avec les Scholies de Théon, les
catasterismes d'Eratosthenes et la sphère de Leontius
traduit ... par l'Abbé N. Halma. Gr. avec Fr. Paris, 1821.
pp. 65-73.
[Illustration: The Egyptian Gnomon. _From pen drawing_]
Chapter III
Globes Constructed by the Arabs
Followers of Ptolemy.--Early armillary spheres.--Interest
of the Califs in globes and astronomical instruments.--The
record of the 'Fihrist.'--Ibrahim.--Caissar.--Mohammed ben
Helal.--Mohammed el Ordhi.--The Paris globes.--Ridhwan
Efendi.
In passing from the period of classical antiquity to the so-called
Christian middle ages, attention may first be directed to the activities
of the Arabs in the field of astronomy and geography, in so far as their
activities had to do with the construction of globes.[49] The
information which we have, concerning their astronomical studies in
particular, is more detailed than is that which has come down to us
respecting any other peoples who may have been interested in these
centuries in the same field of study.
Doubt may be expressed at the outset that the Arabs were interested in
the construction of terrestrial globes, since with the matter of
descriptive geography they appear to have been very little concerned, a
fact which their imperfect cartographical attempts clearly
demonstrate.[50] Although the theory of a globular earth was early
accepted by their learned men,[51] there is scarcely a trustworthy
allusion in literature to Arabic terrestrial globes which can be cited.
An occasional reference, however, has been made by modern writers to a
globe said to have been constructed for King Roger of Sicily. Without
citing his authority, Freyheer F. v. Zach states that "the oldest
terrestrial globe which is known was made for King Roger II of Sicily in
the twelfth century, and is especially remarkable for the value of the
metal which was used in its construction, this being 400 pounds of
silver. A knowledge of this globe would not have come down to our day
had not Edrisi, a famous geographer of that time, given an especial
description of the same, under the title Nothatol mostak (Pleasure of
the Soul)."[52] It is probable that the reference here is to a circular
disc made by Edrisi, or an armillary sphere, but not to a terrestrial
globe.[53]
As to Arabic celestial globes, a different situation presents itself. It
is well known that the inhabitants of Arabia, long before the time of
Islam, were in the habit of observing the stars, many of which, as Dorn
has noted, they knew and designated by names taken from pastoral life,
and several of which they worshiped as visible gods.[54]
Calif al-Mansur, who began his reign in 754 A. D., appears to have been
the first to show a decided taste for astronomical science, and for many
centuries following him this interest is strikingly pronounced among the
people of his country.[55] Scholars were eagerly attracted to the works
of Ptolemy, which were many times translated into Arabic, and
commentaries were written upon his description of the names and figures
of the several constellations. The only alteration they allowed
themselves to make in the names of the stars was to translate them into
their own language, or to substitute for those they could not understand
other names that conveyed an idea to their minds, applicable to the
constellation before the eyes. Andromeda they called "The Chained Lady";
Cassiopeia they called "The Lady in the Chair"; Orion received the name
"The Giant." They followed in the construction of their armillary
spheres and celestial globes the description laid down in Ptolemy's
'Syntaxis,' modifying these astronomical instruments, from time to time,
as their studies directed them.[56]
The list of califs interested in astronomy is a long one, both of those
who remained in the original homeland, and of those who went to the new
home in the Iberian Peninsula.[57] The Mohammedan Hulagu Khan, for
example, erected, about 1264, an observatory in his Mongol capital,
Maragha, near Tabriz, which long remained a noted center for
astronomical studies.[58] This observatory, however, was but one of a
number of similar institutions erected either by the Arabs or by the
Persians. We are told that the construction of astronomical instruments
was brought to a high degree of perfection by these peoples in the
thirteenth century.[59] The names of many of the Arabic astronomers who
were particularly expert as globe makers are recorded, and there were
many who wrote on the subject of celestial spheres, armillary spheres,
and astrolabes, even before the tenth century.[60] The author of the
'Fihrist,' Ibn Abî Ja'kûb an-Nadîm, tells us that Kurra ben Kamîtâ
al-Harrânî constructed a globe which he himself had seen.[61] This, he
says, was made of unbleached material from Dabik, and colored, but that
the colors were much faded. Ibn Alnabdi, who was known as a clever
mechanic, mentions two globes which he had examined and admired for
their excellency of execution, in the public library of Kahira, in the
year 1043. One of these globes, he says, was made of brass, by Ptolemy
himself; the other, of silver, was constructed by Abul Hassan Alsufi,
for the immediate use of the king, Adad Eddoula.[62]
As a visible evidence of the interest of the Arabs in astronomical
science, and of their skill in the construction of astronomical
instruments, we have preserved to us, besides numerous astrolabes, no
less than seven globes, known to have been constructed prior to the year
1600. The oldest one extant is now in the possession of the R. Istituto
di Studi Superiori of Florence, Italy.[63] This fine example of the
skill which was attained by the instrument makers of Valencia, Spain, at
one time a flourishing center of Arabic culture, appears to date from
the second half of the eleventh century. According to an inscription on
the globe, we learn that it was made at Valencia by Ibrahim Ibn
Said-as-Sahli, in the year 473 of the Hegira, a date equivalent to
1080 A. D. This date Professor Meucci finds confirmed by a careful study
of the position of the stars represented on the globe. He notes, for
example, that the star Regulus had been placed at a distance of 16
degrees 40 minutes from the sign of Leo. Ptolemy, in the year 140 A. D.,
gave this distance as 2 degrees 30 minutes. According to Albaregnius,
this star advances about one degree every sixty-six years. Since 140
A.D. the star, therefore, would have moved 14 degrees 10 minutes, which
fact would lead astronomers to place this star, about 1080, as it
appears on the globe. The globe is of brass, 20 cm. in diameter, having
engraved on its surface forty-seven constellations, as given by Ptolemy,
omitting only the Cup, with 1042 stars, each with its respective
magnitude indicated.
A second Arabic celestial globe, which dates from the year 1225, has
been described in detail in a monograph by Assemani, which he issued in
the year 1790.[64] This remarkably interesting object belonged, at the
time, to the extensive and celebrated collection of antiquities and
curiosities of Cardinal Borgia, in Velletri, but may now be found in the
Museo Nazionale of Naples. It is composed of two brass hemispheres,
having both horizon and meridian circles, the whole resting upon four
supporting feet. A Cufic inscription tells us that it was made by
Caissar ben Abul Casem ben Mosafer Alabiaki Alhanefi, in the year of the
Hegira 622. Caissar probably was an astronomer at the court of Cairo,
and the Mohammedan date as given, translated into Christian reckoning,
gives us the year 1225.
In the year 1829 Dorn published a detailed description of an Arabic
globe which had been deposited in the museum of the Asiatic Society of
London (Fig. 13) by Sir John Malcolm.[65] It is of brass, has a diameter
of 24 cm., and is furnished with a substantial mounting. The peculiar
features of the figures which represent the several constellations
suggest Persian workmanship. In the vicinity of the south pole is an
inscription in Cufic characters, telling us that it was "Made by the
most humble in the supreme god, Mohammed ben Helal, the astronomer of
Monsul, in the year of the Hegira 674." This year answers to the year
1275 of the Christian era, that is, it was constructed about the same
time as the Borgian globe and that belonging to the Dresden collection,
briefly described below. Forty-seven constellations are represented. On
the horizon circle, in their respective places, we find engraved the
words, "East," "West," "South," "North."
[Illustration: Fig. 13. Northern Hemisphere of Globe by Mohammed ben
Helal, 1275.]
The Arabic globe, to be found in the Mathematical Salon of Dresden (Fig.
14), has proved to be one of much interest and scientific value to
students of astronomy.[66] Bode, who described it in the year 1808,
refers to its remarkably fine execution and to its Cufic inscriptions as
being among the finest extant specimens of early Arabic writing. The
sphere is of brass, having a diameter of 14 cm., and is composed of two
parts, separable on the line of the ecliptic. It has a brass horizon
circle, on which is engraved at the east the word "rising," and at the
west the word "setting." It is not supplied with a movable meridian
circle, but within the horizon circle, from north to south, and from
east to west, there are two brass half circles, of the same diameter as
the horizon circle and so adjusted as to form one piece with it. Through
such an arrangement it is made possible to turn the globe in any desired
direction, one half of it being at all times above the horizon. In
addition to the above arrangement, there are two movable half circles,
attached at the zenith point by a pivot. These half circles are
graduated, and are movable, making it possible to find, by means of
them, the declination and right ascension of any star. The base, which
must be comparatively modern, consists of a circular plate, from which
rise four turned support columns, attached at their upper extremities to
the two half circles of brass, on which rests the horizon circle.
[Illustration: Fig. 14. Globe of Mohammed ben Muwajed el Ordhi, 1279.]
The date of construction cannot be far from 1279, which is
determinable from the position of the stars engraved thereon, relative,
for example, to the equinoctial points. The maker's name, "Mohammed ben
Muwajed el Ordhi," appears near the constellation Ursa Major, and is
inlaid in silver. There appear, very artistically engraved, the lines
representing the principal circles, the outlines of the several
constellations, with their names, some of these being inlaid with
silver, some with gold. The equator and the ecliptic are represented on
the surface of the sphere, each by two engraved parallel lines, and are
graduated, the graduation in each instance being represented by four
short and one long line, alternating thus by fives throughout the entire
three hundred and sixty degrees. The equator is inlaid with gold, the
other circles with silver. The names of the twelve constellations in the
zodiac are alternately inlaid with gold and silver, while all star
names, except as indicated, are inlaid with silver. The constellations
represented number forty-eight, the human figures all being clad,
turning the front and right face toward the observer.
The Bibliothèque Nationale of Paris possesses two ancient Arabic globes,
one of which, neither signed nor dated, has been thought to have been
constructed in the eleventh century.[67] This was obtained by Jomard, in
Egypt, more than sixty years ago. It has a diameter of about 19 cm., is
furnished with a horizon circle, which is upheld by four semicircular
arms, these, in turn, resting upon a base composed of four flat and
rather inartistic supports. The engraving on the surface of the brass
sphere closely resembles that on the Dresden globe. A detailed
description of this globe has not been obtainable.
A second Paris Arabic globe,[68] like the preceding, belongs to the
Bibliothèque Nationale (Fig. 15). It has a diameter of something less
than 15 cm., and was constructed by Diemat Eddin Mohammed, in the year
of the Hegira 981, which in the Christian reckoning corresponds to the
year 1573.
[Illustration: Fig. 15. Globe of Diemat Eddin Mohammed, 1573.]
The Imperial Library of Petrograd possesses an Arabic globe, constructed
in the year 1701.[69] It is described by Dorn as a fine example of the
globe maker's art, closely resembling, in its general features, the
Arabic globe in the collection of the Royal Asiatic Society of London.
It has a diameter of about 19 cm., rests upon an ornamental tripod base,
and is adjusted to turn within a brass circle, which circle is fitted
into a larger one, so marked and graduated as to represent four
concentric circles. The first or inner circle, representing the horizon,
is divided into thirty-six divisions of ten degrees each; on the second
circle the degrees are indicated by letters; on the third circle appear
the twelve signs of the zodiac and the four principal directions, east,
west, north, south; the fourth circle is divided into thirty-six parts,
formed by the extension of the lines which divide the first, or horizon
circle, into thirty-six parts. On the last circle the names of one
hundred and four cities and countries are given. Not far from the north
pole is an inscription which gives us the name of the maker and the date
of construction. Therein we read that it was completed in the year 1113
of the flight of the Prophet, or in the year 1701 of Christian
reckoning, by Ridhwan, for Maulana Hassan Efendi, who, toward the end of
the seventeenth century, was director of the astronomical observatory of
Cairo, and gave substantial encouragement to makers of globes and of
other instruments employed in astronomical studies. The equator, the
ecliptic, and the parallels are represented, the first two by parallel
circles which are crossed or joined by lines dividing them into
seventy-two principal parts, each part being again subdivided into
fifths. The close resemblance of this example to the earlier known
Arabic globes suggests that there was little, if any, progress among
those peoples in the art of globe construction since the eleventh
century.
[Illustration: Fig. 15a. Anonymous Arabic Globe, 1635.]
NOTES
[49] Delambre, J. B. J. Histoire de l'Astronomie ancienne.
Paris, 1817. See Vol. I, pp. 372, 516, containing references
to globes, celestial and terrestrial, constructed in India
and in China about the years 450 and 724 A.D.
[50] Peschel, O. Geschichte der Erdkunde bis auf C. Ritter
und A. V. Humboldt. Berlin, 1877. See pp. 145-160, wherein
reference is made to their lack of interest in descriptive
geography; Beazley. Dawn of Modern Geography. Vol. I, chap.
vii.
[51] Günther, S. Studien zur Geschichte der mathematischen
und physikalischen Geographie. Halle, 1877. Heft 2; Ibn Abî
Ja'kûb an-Nadîm. Katâb al-Fihrist (Book of Records), ed. by
Gustav Flugel. Leipzig, 1871-1872. 2 vols. The greater part
of this Arabic work was written about the year 987 A. D.
Edrisi states it as "the opinion of philosophers, of
illustrious savants, and of skilled observers in the
knowledge of celestial bodies, that the earth is round as a
sphere." See Edrisi, Geography, tr. de l'Arabe en français
par P. Amédée Jaubert. (In: Receuel de voyages et de
mémoires. Paris, 1830. 2 vols.) Vol. I, p. 1.
[52] Zach, F. v. Monatliche Korrespondenz. Gotha, 1806. Vol.
XIII, p. 157; Suter, H. Das Mathematiker-Verzeichniss im
Fihrist. (In: Zeitschrift für Mathematik und Physik.
Leipzig, 1892.) This work contains many references to
distinguished oriental scholars who treated in their
writings the doctrine of the sphere, the astrolabe, and the
armillary sphere.
[53] Wittstein, T. Historisch-astronomische Fragmente aus
der arabischen Litteratur. (In: Abhandlungen zur Geschichte
der Mathematik. Leipzig, 1892. Heft 6, p. 98.) The opinion
is here expressed that a terrestrial globe by Edrisi never
existed; Hadradauer, C. v. Die Feldzeugmeister Ritter von
Hauslabische Kartensammlung. (In: Mitteilungen der K. K.
Geographische Gesellschaft zu Wien. Wien, 1886. Neue Folge
19, pp. 387-388.) The opinion is expressed that Edrisi
constructed a planisphere and not a globe. Amari, M. Storia
dei Musulmani di Sicilia. Firenze, 1868. pp. 453 ff., 669
ff.
[54] Dorn, B. Description of an Arabic celestial globe. (In:
Transactions of the Royal Asiatic Society. London, 1829.
Vol. II, pp. 371-392.)
[55] Dorn, op. cit.
[56] Dorn, op. cit.
[57] See the list as given in the Fihrist, referred to in
note 4. Naser ben Mohamed Abul Gioush, King of Castile, is
referred to as having been much interested in astronomy, in
which science he acquired such proficiency as to enable him
to construct a number of very useful astronomical
instruments.
[58] Lelewel, J. Géographie du moyen âge. Bruxelles, 1857.
Vol. I, p. 116; Jourdain. Mémoire sur l'observatoire de
Méragah. Paris, 1810. It is well known that under the
direction of Nasr-Eddin, who was called to the charge of
this observatory by Hulagu Khan, astronomical instruments
were constructed.
[59] Dorn, op. cit.
[60] See the Fihrist, also a list as given by Dorn.
[61] Dorn, op. cit.
[62] Dorn, op. cit.
[63] Meucci, F. Il globo celeste arabico del seculo XI
esistente nel Gabinetto degli strumenti antichi di
Astronomia, Mathematica nel R. Istituto di Studi Superiori.
Firenze, 1878.
[64] Assemani, S. Globus coelestis cufico-arabicus
Veliterani Musei Borgiani. Patavii, 1790.
[65] Dorn, op. cit.
[66] Beigel, W. Nachricht von einer Arabischen Himmelskugel
mit Kufischer Schrift, welche im kurfürstlichen
Mathematischen Salon zu Dresden aufbewahrt wird. (In: Bodes
Astronomisches Jahrbuch für das Jahr 1808. Berlin, 1808. pp.
97 ff.); Drechsler, A. Der arabische Himmelsglobus
angefertigt 1279 zu Meragha. Dresden, 1873.
[67] Sedillot, L. A. Mémoire sur les instruments
astronomiques des Arabes. Paris, 1841. pp. 117 ff.; same
author. Matériaux pour servir à l'histoire comparée des
sciences mathématiques chez les grecs et les orientaux.
Paris, 1845. Vol. I, pp. 334 ff.; Jomard, M. Monuments de la
Géographie. Paris, 1854. It is very doubtful that a date so
early should be given to this globe.
[68] Information courteously given by M. L. Vallée.
[69] Dorn, B. Drei in der kaiserlichen öffentlichen
Bibliothek zu St. Petersburg befindliche astronomische
Instrumente mit arabischen Inschriften. (In: Mémoires de
l'Académie Impériale des Sciences de St. Pétersbourg. St.
Pétersbourg, 1865. VI^e serie, Tome IX, No. 1.)
[Illustration: Arabic Celestial Globe. _From Dorn's illustration_]
Chapter IV
Terrestrial and Celestial Globes in the Christian Middle Ages
General attitude of the period toward the theories of the
Greeks and the Romans.--Scripture statements as sources of
information.--Inclination of certain early writers to
accept the doctrine of a spherical earth.--The particular
attitude of Pope Sylvester II.--The asserted interest of
Emperor Frederick II in scientific studies.--Alfonso the
Wise and the Alfonsian tables.--Interesting allusions in
Alfonso's work to globes and globe construction.--Giovanni
Campano of Novara and the statements in his 'Tractatis de
sphera solida.'--The attitude of Albertus Magnus,
Sacrobosco, Roger Bacon, Vincent of Beauvais, Dante.
For many centuries following the fall of the Western Roman Empire, there
appears to have been in Christian Europe but little interest in the
fundamental principles of geographical or astronomical science. The
theories of the Greeks and the Romans respecting a spherical earth and a
spherical firmament encompassing it, in illustration of which they had
constructed globes, were not entirely forgotten, but such theories in
general were considered to be valueless, hindrances rather than helps to
the theological beliefs of the new Christian era.[70]
Though the early Church Fathers were inclined to reject the idea of a
globular earth,[71] there were not a few among them who found the theory
of a circular earth an acceptable one. The latter, it is true, was an
early Greek belief, referred to above as having been entertained in
Homer's day, and as having been passed down to succeeding centuries,
but Christian writers did not find in the fact of its pagan origin a
particular argument for accepting it; on the contrary, the Bible was
held by many to be the fountain of all knowledge, and a sure guide no
less in the solution of problems pertaining to the physical sciences
than in the solution of problems pertaining to faith and doctrine. What
was contained in the Scriptures found a more ready acceptance than what
was to be found in pagan writers.[72] Isaiah's statement, "It is He that
sitteth upon the circle of the earth," was regarded as one altogether
adequate on which to found a theory of the form of the earth, and it was
accepted by such biblical interpreters as Lactantius, Cosmas
Indicopleustes (Figs. 16, 17), Diodorus of Tarsus, Chrysostom, Severian
of Gabala, by those who were known as the Syrians, by Procopius and
Decuil.[73] Men, however, such as Basil, Gregory of Nyssa, and
Philoponos inclined strongly toward the Aristotelian doctrine of a
spherical earth.[74] Isidore of Seville appears to have been a supporter
of the spherical doctrine,[75] as was also the Venerable Bede, who, in
his 'De natura rerum,' upholds the doctrine of a spherical earth on
practically the same grounds as those advanced by Aristotle.[76]
[Illustration: Fig. 16. The Universe according to Cosmas Indicopleustes,
Sixth Century.]
[Illustration: Fig. 17. Cosmas' Illustration Confuting the Existence of
Antipodal Peoples.]
In illustration of the doctrine of a circular earth, terrestrial globes
certainly could not have been thought of as having any practical value.
With a rejection of the spherical theory of the ancients very naturally
went the rejection of their globes.
The circular or Homeric theory, as noted above, had its supporters, even
to the close of the middle ages, but the inclination is more or less
marked, even as early as the seventh century, to accept again the
doctrine of a spherical earth. It seems to have come into prominence
again with the growing belief in the importance of the place of the
earth in the universe. After the eighth century this theory may be said
to have had a very general acceptance by those who, Faust-like, felt a
desire for a larger freedom from theological restraint than the church
encouraged. (Figs. 18, 19.)
[Illustration: Fig. 18. Hereford World Map, ca. 1283.]
[Illustration: Fig. 19. The Earth Pictured as a Sphere by Nicolas
d'Oresme, 1377.]
Attention has been called to the attitude of the writings of the
Anglo-Saxon Church Father, the Venerable Bede. Although we have no
unquestionable proof that Bede, or Alcuin,[77] who was greatly
influenced by him, insisted on the use of globes in geographical
instruction, there is good reason for thinking these scholars would have
inclined to encourage their use. The monastic schools, which, in the
methods of instruction, rested upon the plan wrought out by Alcuin for
the Palace School of Charles the Great, considered globes to be
apparatus of great educational value. Professor Günther is inclined to
think it probable that celestial globes were used throughout the early
centuries of this mediaeval period in the better schools, though no
positive statement to that effect can be cited.[78]
We know that an exact knowledge of the movements of the sun, of the
moon, and of the constellations was considered to be of first importance
for the priesthood in the middle ages, since it was through a knowledge
of their movements that the times for the observance of the rigid church
rules were fixed.[79] The acquisition of such knowledge could best be
secured through the use of the celestial globe.[80] We learn from Notker
Labeo (950-1022), one of the most distinguished teachers of the monastic
school of St. Gallen, that he made use of such globes for
astro-geographical instruction, which, in their important features, were
like our modern celestial globes, for he tells us "they were supplied
with all necessary parts." It seems evident that those of which he made
use could be adjusted to every desired altitude of the pole.[81]
One of the most distinguished scholars of the tenth century was Bishop
Gerbert (ca. 940-1003), later Pope Sylvester II, of whose learning we
possess reliable evidence.[82] His astronomical knowledge so astonished
his contemporaries that he was thought to be a necromancer and was
accused of being in league with the evil one.[83] He was a diligent
student of the literature of antiquity, which had survived to his day,
especially surpassing all others, it is reported, in his acquaintance
with the learning of pagan Rome. In the instruction which he gave in
astronomical science he made use of various instruments, to the end that
his pupils might the better understand the subject, among which
instruments were celestial globes and armillary spheres. These were a
source of much wonderment to his contemporaries. It is said that one of
these instruments was so skilfully constructed that even the untrained
by its use, having one constellation pointed out, would be able to
locate all others "with the aid of a globe and without the aid of a
teacher."[84] In a letter to the monastic teacher Constantius, with whom
Gerbert stood in the friendliest relations for many years at Rheims, he
refers to the construction of a celestial globe, and in a more detailed
manner he makes mention of this when writing to Remigius of Trier. In
four of his letters to this last named prelate, Gerbert touches upon his
purpose to construct a globe, but on account of the added duties which
were his, occasioned by the death of Archbishop Adalbero, he seems not
to have been able to complete his work. He expresses himself, in the
third one of these letters, as hopeful that a favorable time might yet
come for him to take up the plan, but the increasing opposition of his
enemies left him no leisure for scientific labors of this character, and
it does not appear that he turned his attention again to globe
making.[85]
The thirteenth century furnishes us with the names of two distinguished
princes who were especially active in advancing scientific studies of
their times. One of these was the Hohenstaufen Frederick II, concerning
whom we are informed that he directed a learned Arabian, who sojourned
at his court, to construct for him a celestial globe of gold on which
the stars were to be represented by pearls.[86] We are further told that
as an outcome of his friendly relations with the rulers of the East,
the Sultan of Egypt sent to him an astronomical tent of wonderful
construction. In this the sun and the moon were represented and by means
of a skilfully constructed mechanism they were made to rise and set,
marking out the hours of day and night.[87]
As a ruler of like intellectual and scientific interests, the Castilian,
Alfonso X, who lived in the thirteenth century, known as "The Wise" and
as "The Astronomer," deserves to be especially mentioned. By his order
an elaborate astronomical work was prepared, which holds a place of
first importance among mediaeval productions of its character. In this
work the construction of globes is discussed in a very detailed manner,
mention being made of every feature regarded as belonging to a properly
constructed celestial sphere. So significant are certain chapters of
this work for the history of globes and of globe making that a free
translation is here given of that part relating to materials of which
globes may be constructed.[88] "A sphere may be made of many materials,"
says the author, "as of gold, or silver, or copper, or brass, or iron,
or lead, or tin, or of a combination of these metals; or they may be
made of stone, or clay, or wood. They may also be made of leather, of
cloth, of parchment in many layers, and of many other materials which
men employ when they wish to give an exhibition of their skill. Those,
however, who have carefully considered these things, have decided that
there is nothing more suitable than wood and for the following reasons.
If the globe should be made of gold, only a very rich man would be able
to possess it; furthermore it would be very heavy. If it should be made
of thin sheets of gold it could be easily indented and would not long
remain a perfect sphere. If it should be made small, that which was
represented thereon would not appear distinct. The same thing may be
said of silver, although it is a metal stronger than gold, as it is
likewise harder, and therefore is not so easily indented. Copper is a
metal harder than either silver or gold, but is so dry that it can not
be easily fashioned into a globe, which should always be well made.
Brass, which is like dark colored copper, may be more easily fashioned,
because it is more malleable than copper, and is stronger than either
gold or silver. If, however, a globe made of this material should be
thin it might easily lose its shape, and if thick it would be very
heavy. Of all metals, however, this is the one most suitable for use in
making spheres, as it is the one most commonly employed. A globe of iron
would be very difficult to make and would be very heavy, and since the
rust would have to be removed from it very frequently, there would be
much danger of destroying the figures. A globe of tin, if made of a thin
sheet, could be easily indented, and would be very heavy if the sheet of
which made were thick. Lead, if thin, would offer less resistance to
injury than tin, and is a material much heavier. Furthermore, as lead is
inclined to turn black, the figures and the stars represented on a globe
of this material would soon become so discolored as to be no longer
visible. There is no way by which it can be cleaned without wiping out
the figures. Although the metal could be combined to form that material
of which water jugs and buckets are made it would be so fragile as to
break like glass. Clay, which is also used for the making of water jugs,
mortars, and fountains, is not suitable for globes, because if thin it
would break easily, and if thick it would be very heavy. Moreover this
material when prepared must be baked in a kiln which fact renders it
unsuitable for use in making spheres. A globe should not be made of
stone, since if this were transparent the figures could not easily be
seen, and such material would be very heavy. It would not be fitting to
make so noble an object as a sphere of the material of which jars are
made. Leather would not be suitable, though it might be fashioned into a
permanent spherical shape. Such material shrinks in hot weather or when
brought near a fire. Cloth would not be suitable, though it were made
very strong, since heat would cause it to shrink, and moisture would
cause it to lose its shape, and this same thing may be said of
parchment. A sphere of wood is strong and is of reasonable weight and
may be made in the manner which we shall set forth." The original
manuscript of this work is profusely illustrated, including
representations of the figures of the several constellations (Fig. 20).
[Illustration: Fig. 20. The Constellation Taurus.]
In the latter part of the thirteenth century the mathematician, Giovanni
Campano, a native of Novara and it appears a particular friend and
supporter of Pope Urban IV, won distinction for his scholarly
attainments in the field of astronomy.[89] In addition to his work,
titled, 'Teorica planetarum,' wherein he comments on the subject of
astronomy and geometry, and makes copious references to the Greek
geometrician Euclid, whose works he had translated into Latin, he
prepared a treatise which he called 'Tractatis de sphera solida.' In the
prologue to this work, after noting that the number of astronomical
instruments which have been constructed is large, he states that in the
main they agree in their representation of the movements of the heavens,
adding that as the heavens are spherical, spherical instruments are to
be preferred. In his first chapter, after alluding to the astronomical
instruments described by Ptolemy, he proceeds to treat of the
composition of solid spheres, which he says may be made of metal, or
better, of wood. He gives rules for making the same by the use of the
lathe, and notes in conclusion it is well to make the sphere hollow in
order to lighten the weight. In the following chapters he treats of the
inscription of the circles of the sphere, of the construction of the
several rings employed in the mounting, such as the horizon and the
meridian circles, and gives consideration to the representation of the
several constellations on the surface of the ball. In the second part of
his treatise he gives instruction as to how to use the instrument in the
solution of astronomical problems.
There appears to be only the slightest evidence that Campano was
acquainted with the work of Alfonso. His presentation of the subject, in
all probability, was altogether independent of a knowledge of the
Alfonsian tables. It is interesting to observe that in the day when
astrology was in great favor in the universities of Europe, Campano
continued to be interested in genuine astronomical science.
Albertus Magnus, in his 'Liber de coelo et mondo,'[90] devotes an entire
chapter to a theoretical consideration of gravitation, asserting that
the earth is spherical (Spherica sive orbicularis necessario), and
proceeds to a demonstration of the theory, in which he practically
follows the arguments of Aristotle, that every particle of the earth
away from the center is continually in movement seeking that center, the
result being the formation of a spherical body. He advances further, as
argument in proof of a spherical earth, that the shadow it casts in an
eclipse of the moon is circular.
Sacrobosco (John of Holywood or Halifax) (fl. 1230),[91] who was active
in the first half of the thirteenth century, much of the time as
professor of mathematics in the University of Paris, prepared a work
bearing the title, 'Tractatus de sphaera,' being in part a summary of
the 'Almagest' of Ptolemy. In this work the theory of a spherical earth
is supported in much the same manner as was done by Campano. The
'Tractatus' proved to be one of the most important quasi scientific
geographical and astronomical textbooks of the later middle ages, being
frequently copied, and frequently printed after the invention of that
art.[92]
Further reference might be made to a belief in a spherical earth, as
held by Roger Bacon (1214-1294),[93] by Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274),[94]
by Vincent of Beauvais (1190-1264),[95] by Dante (1265-1321),[96] and
still others of the thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth centuries. It
should, however, be stated that nowhere in the works of these authors
does there appear a reference to the construction of terrestrial globes,
and only incidentally the implication that they knew of or approved the
construction of celestial globes.
The increasing interest in geography and in astronomy in the closing
years of the middle ages led most naturally, in time, to much activity
in globe construction, and to this fact attention is directed in the
following chapter.
NOTES
[70] Beazley's monumental work, previously cited, considers
the geographical knowledge of the Christian middle ages,
from the closing years of the Western Roman Empire to the
early years of the fifteenth century. See especially Vol. I,
chap. vi; Vol. II, chap. vi; Vol. III, chap. vi. Marinelli,
G. Die Erdkunde bei den Kirchvätern. Leipzig, 1884;
Kretschmer, K. Die physische Erdkunde im christlichen
Mittelalter. Wien, 1889; Cosmas Indicopleustes. Christian
Topography, tr. by J. M. McCrindle. (In: Hakluyt Society
Publications. London, 1897); Günther, S. Die
kosmographischen Anschauung des Mittelalters. (In: Deutsch.
Rundschau für Geographie und Statistik. Vol. IV, pp. 135
ff.)
[71] Zöckler, O. Geschichte der Beziehungen zwischen
Theologie und Naturwissenschaft. Gütersloh, 1877. pp. 122
ff.; White, A. D. A History of the Warfare of Science with
Theology in Christendom. New York, 1895-1897. See especially
chaps. ii-iii. See also references in note 1.
[72] Isaiah, chap. xl, v. 20; Ezechiel, chap. xxxviii, v.
12; Job, chap, xxvi, v. 7, 10; Psalm cxxxvi, 6.
[73] Note summary and citations in Kretschmer, op. cit.
[74] Note citations in Kretschmer, op. cit.
[75] See his works, Etymologia, 3, 24-71, and De natura
rerum, 9-27. Brehaut, E. An Encyclopedist of the Dark Ages.
Isidore of Seville. (In: Studies in History, Economics and
Public Law, Columbia University. New York, 1912. Vol.
xlviii, No. 1.)
It must be admitted that there is considerable incoherence
in the views of the world as expressed by the great majority
of the mediaeval writers. One not infrequently lands in
confusion when undertaking an investigation of their
opinions.
[76] Beda. Opuscula scientifica. Ed. by J. A. Giles. London,
1843. See De natura rerum, chap. xlvi, titled, "Terram globo
similem."
[77] West, A. F. Alcuin and the Rise of Christian Schools.
New York, 1892; Mullinger, J. B. The Schools of Charles the
Great. New York, 1911; Fellner, R. Kompendium der
Naturwissenschaften an der Schule zu Fulda. Berlin, 1879.
The real founder of the monastic schools was Hrabanus
Maurus, who was a pupil of Alcuin, and who carried to the
monastery of Fulda that Englishman's love for the
Quadrivium.
[78] Günther, S.-Fiorini, M. Erd- und Himmelsgloben.
Leipzig, 1895. p. 19.
[79] Specht, F. A. Geschichte des Unterrichtswesen in
Deutschland von den ältesten Zeiten bis zur Mitte des XIII
Jahrhunderts. Stuttgart, 1885. pp. 127 ff.
[80] Günther-Fiorini, op. cit., p. 18, n. 4, refers to a
star map made in the monastery of St. Emeran in the early
fifteenth century, and now belonging to the K. K. Hof- und
Staats-Bibliothek of Munich, which was intended for a
"Compositio spere solido."
[81] Arx, J. v. Geschichte des Kantons St. Gallen. St.
Gallen, 1810. p. 265.
[82] Büdinger, M. Über Gerberts wissenschaftliche und
politische Stellung. Marburg, 1851; Werner, K. Gerbert von
Aurillac, die Kirche und die Wissenschaft seiner Zeit. Wien,
1878.
[83] Büdinger, op. cit., p. 38.
[84] Specht, op. cit., pp. 138-139; Dummler, E. Ekkehart IV
von St. Gallen. (In: Zeitschrift für deutsches Altertum.
Berlin, 1869. Neue Folge, Vol. 2, p. 23.) The implication in
the last named work seems to be that globes were used in
many of the schools of this early day. Mabillon, J. Veterum
analectorum. Paris, 1676. Tom. 2, p. 212. The statement here
made clearly refers to the use of globes in astronomical
instruction.
[85] Gerbert, Letters of, 983-997, publiées avec une
introduction et des notes par J. Havet. Paris, 1889. See
especially Nos. 134, 148, 152, 162. Gerbert refers, in these
letters to Remigius, to a globe which he intended to
construct.
[86] Lelewel, op. cit., Vol. II, p. 2.
[87] Raumer, F. v. Geschichte der Hohenstaufen und ihre
Zeit. Leipzig, 1878. Vol. III, p. 493. This astronomical
tent has sometimes been referred to as a globe.
[88] Libros del Saber de Astronomia del Rey D. Alfonso X de
Castilla. Compilados, anotados y comentados por Don Manuel
Rico y Sinobas. Madrid, 1863-1867. See especially Vol. I,
pp. 153 ff.
[89] Enciclopedia Universal illustrada, "Campano";
Tiraboschi, G. Storia della letteratura italiana. Roma,
1782-1785. Tom. IV, lib. ii, cap. ii, §v; Fiorini. Sfere
terrestri. pp. 40-56.
There are numerous manuscripts of Campano to be found in the
University Library of Bologna, in the Ambrosiana of Milan,
and in the Library of San Marco in Venice. Fiorini refers to
a number of writers who may be said to have followed and in
part copied Campano.
[90] Albertus Magnus. Liber de coelo et mundo. Lib. II 4, c.
9. For a short biography of Albertus see Encyclopaedia
Britannica, "Albertus Magnus."
[91] Günther, S. Geschichte des mathematischen Unterrichtes,
im deutschen Mittelalter bis zum Jahre 1525. Berlin, 1887.
pp. 184 ff.
[92] Catalogue of Printed Books in the British Museum
contains a list of more than fifty editions, the first being
printed in the year 1472.
[93] Biographies are numerous. See Dictionary of National
Biography, "Roger Bacon," with bibliographical list. See
Bacon's Opus Magnus, lib. I, 152-153, "necesse est vero
mundum extra habere figuram spericam ..."; also lib. IV, in
which he treats of the form of the earth.
[94] See for a short biography Nouvelle biographie. Paris,
1866. "Thomas d'Aquin."
[95] Bourgeat, J. B. Études sur Vincent de Beauvais. Paris,
1856.
[96] Biographies of Dante are numerous. See his Purgatorio,
Canto XXVII, lines 1-4, referring to midday on the Ganges
when it is dawn in Jerusalem; see also his Aqua et Terra,
wherein he gives expression to a belief in the spherical
theory.
Chapter V
Globes Constructed in the Early Years of the Great Geographical
Discoveries
Increasing interest in geographical discovery and maritime
enterprise in the fourteenth and the fifteenth
century.--Awakened interest in globe construction.--Martin
Behaim and his globe of the year 1492.--The Laon
globe.--Christopher and Bartholomew Columbus and their
interest in globes.--John Cabot and his globe.--Globes of
Johannes Stöffler.--Conrad Celtes and his part in arousing
an interest in globes.
The fourteenth century witnessed among the peoples of Italy and of the
Iberian coast regions a rapidly rising interest in maritime enterprise.
The expansion of Europe, which for two centuries had been overland and
eastward, was now becoming oceanic, with an outlook southward and
westward into the Atlantic. In the fifteenth century, under the
inspiration of Prince Henry the Navigator, the Portuguese were feeling
their way down the coast of Africa, adding year by year to their
knowledge of hitherto unknown lands;[97] the Atlantic island groups, one
by one, were discovered or rediscovered,[98] and in 1487 Bartholomew
Diaz turned the Cape of Good Hope and opened a new way to the Indies of
the East.[99] Through all these enterprises a new and vigorous stimulus
was given to interest in geographical studies, just as an awakening had
followed the disclosure of the riches of the East by Carpini, Rubruquis,
and especially by Marco Polo in the earlier post-crusading years.[100]
Out of this lively interest in all that pertained to the expansion of
knowledge concerning the various regions of the earth came a desire for
better map making,[101] and attention was again intelligently directed
to the construction of terrestrial globes on which to represent the most
recently discovered seas, islands, and continental coasts.
It was Martin Behaim of Nürnberg (1459-1507),[102] who, in so far as we
have knowledge, constructed one of the first modern terrestrial globes
(Fig. 21), and it may, indeed, be said of his "Erdapfel," as he called
it, that it is the oldest terrestrial globe extant. Behaim (Fig. 22)
belonged to the merchant class of a flourishing South German city. He
took advantage of the opportunities which were offered him for travel,
though it is hardly probable that he is entitled to that renown as an
African coast explorer with which certain of his biographers have
attempted to crown him, nor does it appear that he is entitled to a very
prominent place among the men famed in his day for their astronomical
and nautical knowledge. It was doubtless for reasons primarily
commercial that he first found his way to Portugal, where, shortly after
his arrival, probably in the year 1484, he was honored by King John with
an appointment as a member of a nautical or mathematical Junta. During
his earlier years in Portugal he was connected with one or more
expeditions down the coast of Africa, was knighted by the king,
presumably for his services, and made his home for some years on the
island of Fayal. In the year 1490 he returned for a visit to his native
city, Nürnberg, and there is reason for believing that on this occasion
he was received with much honor by his fellow townsmen. It was the
suggestion of George Holzschuher, member of the City Council, and
himself somewhat famed as a traveler, that eventually brought special
renown to our globe maker, for he it was who proposed to his colleagues
of the Council that Martin Behaim should be requested to undertake the
construction of a globe on which the recent Portuguese and other
discoveries should be represented. From a record on the globe itself,
placed within the Antarctic circle, we learn that the work was
undertaken on the authority of three distinguished citizens, Gabriel
Nutzel, Paul Volckamer, and Nikolaus Groland.[103] It is an interesting
fact that we are able to follow in detail the construction of the globe
through its several stages, as the accounts of George Holzschuher, to
whom was entrusted the general supervision of the work, have been
preserved.[104] From his report, presented at the conclusion of the
undertaking, we learn the names of those who participated in the
production of the globe; we learn the amount received by each for his
labors, and that the total cost to the city for the completed product
was something less than seventy-five dollars. Information is given
therein as to the division of the work; how the spherical shell was
prepared; how the vellum covering was fitted to the sphere; how the
rings and the globe supports were supplied; finally, how the artist,
Glockenthon, transferred the map to the prepared surface of the ball and
added to the same the several miniatures, illustrating in rich color a
variety of subjects.
[Illustration: Fig. 21. Globe of Martin Behaim, 1492.]
[Illustration: Fig. 22. Portrait of Martin Behaim.]