412 Authorities and Books for Students 



II. SPECIAL PERIODS. 



Chapters 1. and II. In addition to the general histories quoted 

 above especially Wolf- I have made most use of Tannery's 

 Recherches sur t'Histoire de I Astronomic Ancienne and of several 

 biographical articles (chiefly by De Morgan) in Smith's Dictionary 

 of Classical Biography and Mythology. Ideler's Chronologische 

 L'ntersuchungen, Hankel's Geschichte der Mathematik im Alter- 

 thum ^ind Mittelalter> G. C. Lewis's Astronomy of the Ancients, 

 and Epping & Strassmaier's Astronomisches aus Babylon have 

 also been used to some extent. Unfortunately my attention was 

 only called to Susemihl's Geschichte der Griechischen Litteratur 

 in der Alexandriner Zeit when most of my book was in proof, 

 and I have consequently been able to make but little use of it. 



I have in general made no attempt to consult the original 

 Greek authorities, but I have made some use of translations 

 of Aristarchus, of the Almagest, and of the astronomical writings 

 of Plato and Aristotle. 



Chapter III. The account of Eastern astronomy is based 

 chiefly on Delambre, and on Hankel's Geschichte der Mathematik 

 im Altcrthum und Mittclalter; to a less extent on Whewell. 

 For the West I have made more use of Whewell, and have 

 borrowed biographical material for the English writers from the 

 Dictionary of Rational Biography. I have also consulted a good 

 many of the original astronomical books referred to in the latter 

 part of the chapter. 



I know of no accessible book in English to which to refer 

 students except Whewell, 



Chapter IV. For biographical material, for information as to 

 the minor writings, and as to the history of the publication of 

 the De Revolutionibus I have used little but Prowe's elaborate 

 Nicolaus Coppernicus, and the documents printed in it. My 

 account of the De Revolutionibus is taken from the book itself. 

 The portrait is taken from Dandeleau's engraving of a picture in 

 Lalande's possession. I have not been able to discover any 

 portrait which was clearly made during Coppernicus's lifetime, 

 but the close resemblance between several portraits dating from 

 the I7th century and Dandeleau's seems to shew that the latter 

 is substantially authentic. 



There is a readable account of Coppernicus, as well as of several 

 other astronomers, in Bertrand's Fondateurs de I Astronomie 

 Moderne ; but I have not used the book as an authority. 



Chapter V For the life of Tycho I have relied chiefly on 

 Dreyer's Tycho Brake, which has also been used as a guide to 

 his scientific work ; but I have made constant reference to the 

 original writings : I have also made some use of Gassendi's Vita 



