October 9th, 1998
A 10th-century illustrated manuscript of Archimedes' works is up for sale
this week. The manuscript was only discovered at the beginning of this
century. It was scraped down and re-used in 12th century Constantinople,
but modern techniques can reveal much of the original text and
illustrations. Check out the site - this is precisely the kind of thing
that would have appeared in our course if information and illustrations
had been available. Like many of the manuscripts studied in the course,
the text has incalculable importance: it is the oldest and most accurate
copy of Archimedes' works known to us, and look how nearly it did not
survive! Note that it is no accident that the work was illustrated - rich
materials and elaborate illustrations often go with important, high
quality texts.
Eureka! (info - check out all the links)
Christies (illustrations)