No one else seems to publish all of plinys natural history any longer, but only excerptsunless, of course, you have several hundred dollars to spare for a very dear edition. Drawn entirely by zelinsky and derived from pliny the elders celebrated natural history, this book tells the tale of lion and stoatthe two greatest artists who ever livedwho compete for immortality. Classics the natural history vol 2, by pliny the elder. The natural history naturalis historia is a book about the whole of the natural world in latin by pliny the elder, a roman author and naval commander who died in 79 ad. On 25 august ad pliny the elder, depicted in this miniature, died in the eruption of mount vesuvius. But over the centuries these mistakes have revealed more about plinys world than the accuracies. The natural history of pliny, volume 5 bohns classical library the natural history of pliny, pliny the elder. For what subject is more fresh or affords more abundant materials and scope, or, in a word, is more fitted for poetic treatment. The project gutenberg ebook of the natural history of. This is a fascinating book, yet is only a selection and a small one at that of plinys great work. Pliny the elder, latin in full gaius plinius secundus, born 23 ce, novum comum, transpadane gaul now in italydied august 24, 79, stabiae, near mount vesuvius, roman savant and author of the celebrated natural history, an encyclopaedic work of uneven accuracy that was an authority on scientific matters up to the middle ages. The following is an adaptation of pliny the elder, the natural history, trans. Pliny the elder was the first latin medical author to mention magical formulas. The encyclopaedist pliny the elder natural history 25.
It has often been referred to as an encyclopedia, usually without full awareness of what such a characterisation implies. Help, link to the next level up up, link to my homepage home. If you are generating a pdf of a journal article or book chapter, please feel. Internet archive bookreader plinys natural history. Pliny the elder 2379 ce produced in his natural history a vast compendium of roman knowledge. He spent most of his spare time studying, writing, and investigating natural and geographic phenomena in the field.
Naturalis historia is a book about the whole of the natural world in latin by pliny the elder, a roman author and naval commander who died in 79 ad. The older man, gaius plinius secundus, is called pliny the elder. You are doing quite right to get together materials for a history of the dacian war. The guinness is a compilation of isolated and insipid facts.
Plinys is an organic work, as shakespeares crowded plays or montaignes essays are organic. Naturalis historia latin for natural history is an encyclopedia published circa ad 7779 by pliny the elder. Pliny the elder ad 2379 was a roman natural philosopher who was educated in rome and came into contact with celts during his military service in germany and gaul. Pliny the elder, tireless researcher and writer, is author. Plinys historia naturalis natural history is a vast encyclopaedic work and the only book by him to have survived. In sum there are in this book of histories and observations four. The project gutenberg ebook of the natural history of pliny, volume 1 of 6, by pliny the elder this ebook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the united states and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. Topics included are the mathematics and metrology of the universe. This edition can be found on the internet archive, with the exception of books 3337, which are. American museum of natural history handbook series no.
Pliny the elders natural history is a vast encyclopaedia, surveying natural phenomena from cosmology to biology, medicine to magic. Gaius plinius secundus, called pliny the elder, was a roman author, a naturalist and natural philosopher, a naval and army commander of the early roman empire, and a friend of emperor vespasian. The homepage for plinys natural history the historia naturalis of c. In writing natural history, pliny or his assistants extracted roughly 20,000 facts from 2,000 volumes by 100 authors. My ideal natural history would therefore be for penguin to publish all thirtyseven volumes, yet with copious footnotes so as to learn the accuracy of what pliny says and understand those things that he may have taken for granted. Also in many houses there be hollow places devised by mans hand for the. Featured texts all books all texts latest this just in smithsonian libraries fedlink us genealogy lincoln collection. Book 30, medicinal uses of animal products continued.
Whether magic was ever practised in italy at what period the senate first forbade human sacrifices. It is one of the largest single works to have survived from the roman empire to the modern day and purports to cover all ancient knowledge. Besides a grammar book, pliny wrote several books on roman history, but by far his greatest achievement was natural history. There is no book so bad that some good cannot be got out of it. The elder plinys natural history is one of the largest and most extraordinary works to survive from antiquity. He wrote the encyclopedic naturalis historia natural history, which became an editorial model for encyclopedias. Although pliny did not distinguish between fact, opinion, and speculation in his 37volume treatise, he can be credited with. Julius tree house brewing approximation braumeister 20l a home brew beer recipe at brewers friend. He claimed to have recorded 20,000 pieces of information, although modern scholars say he underestimated his own output. Naturalis historia is an early encyclopedia published circa ad 7779 by pliny the elder it is one of the largest single works to have survived from the roman empire to the modern day and purports to cover all ancient knowledge. Search the history of over 431 billion web pages on the internet.
Gaius plinius secundus ad 232479, called pliny the elder. Page 431 the name which these stones bear, originates, it is said, in the peculiar tint of their brilliancy, which, after closely approaching the colour of wine, passes off into a violet without being fully pronounced. He spent most of his time studying, writing or investigating natural and geographic phenomena in the field. It is said, too, that in the course of thirtyfive days the whole of the spleen maybe discharged under this treatment, by urine and by stool. Pliny the elder, the natural history exploring celtic. Gaius plinius secundus 23 ad august 25, 79 ad, better known as pliny the elder, was a roman author, naturalist, and natural philosopher. One of the earliest surviving examples of such illustrated.
Home articles person pliny the elder pliny the elder, natural. In this book, dr doody examines this concept and its. More information about this seller contact this seller 15. Direct observation, informed speculation and common knowledge are combined to present a key snapshot of ancient thought and the romans perspective on the world around them. Pliny the elder, tireless researcher and writer, is author of the encyclopedic natural history, in 37 books, an unrivaled compendium of roman knowledge. Gaius plinius secundus, better known as pliny the elder, was an author, naturalist, and natural philosopher as well as a naval and army commander of the early roman empire. The world, and this whatever other name men have chosen to designate the sky whose vaulted roof encircles the universe is fitly believed to be a deity, eternal, immeasurable, a being that never began.
If you want to read pliny the elder, the loeb classics are the only way to do so in this day and age. The naturalis historia is one of the largest works to have survived from the roman empire to the modern day. Gaius plinius secundus 23 ad august 25, 79 ad, better known as pliny the elder, was a roman author, naturalist, and natural philosopher, as well as naval and army commander of the early roman empire, and personal friend of the emperor vespasian. The biodiversity heritage library works collaboratively to make biodiversity literature openly available to the world as part of a global biodiversity community.
The natural history there is no book so bad that some good cannot be got out of it, pliny the elder used to say, and he read everything that he could obtain. The works subject area is thus not limited to what is today understood by natural history. His writings refer to twentyseven in all, thirteen being of the simplest type. Plinys natural history is an extraordinarily important document in the history of western science.
In thirtyseven books internet archive bookreader plinys natural history. Pliny himself defines his scope as the natural world, or life. The natural history book vii with book viii 4 pliny the elders natural history is a vast encyclopaedia, surveying natural phenomena from cosmology to biology, medicine to magic. Natural history pliny wikimili, the free encyclopedia wikimili, the free encyclopedia. Pliny the elder, natural history loeb classical library. On his return home he would again give to study any time that he had free. Natural history is an account that can only be given by a. The natural history book vii with book viii by pliny the pliny the elder available from rakuten kobo. Pliny the elder the recipes project food, magic, art. It was probably the first attempt in western civilization to compile an encyclopedia. Pliny the elder wrote the worlds first encyclopedia.
Solder, lawyer and writer, pliny the elders 23 79 ad research into the natural world formed the basis of scientific authority for centuries to come. Pliny the elder wrote about dragons forbidden history. This extraordinary work was originally composed and. He was attempting the rescue by ship of a friend and his family from the eruption of mount vesuvius. The natural history, which was dedicated to titus in 77, was. Pliny the elders sister, plinia, married a man named caecilius, from the northern italian town of. He wrote the encyclopedic naturalis historia, which became an editorial model for encyclopedias. Its an encyclopedia of what passed for scientific information in that time. The bark 5 of the root, taken in wine, in doses of two drachmae, is good for affections of the spleen. Like any great work in human history from plato to galileo, from dante to stephen hawkings plinys natural history is, first of all, a work of imagination. For the original article on pliny see dsb, see vol. His nephew pliny the younger gives an indication how devoted his uncle was to reading and studying, which was like working to him the only time he took from his work was for his bath, and by bath i mean his actual immersion, for while. The illustrated herbal is a genre of pharmacological book known in graecoroman antiquity from at least the first century bce. Returning home, it was upon the praises of this art that they expatiatedit was this that they held as one of their grandest mysteries.