Ptolemy's Tetrabiblos, or Quadripartite: being four books of the influence of the stars / Newly translated from the Greek paraphrase of Proclus. With a preface, explanatory notes, and an appendix, containing extracts from the Almagest of Ptolemy and the whole of his Centiloquy; together with a short notice of Mr. Ranger's Zodiacal planisphere, and an explanatory plate. By J. M. Ashmand.

  • Ptolemy, active 2nd century.
Date:
1822
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Ptolemy's Tetrabiblos, or Quadripartite: being four books of the influence of the stars / Newly translated from the Greek paraphrase of Proclus. With a preface, explanatory notes, and an appendix, containing extracts from the Almagest of Ptolemy and the whole of his Centiloquy; together with a short notice of Mr. Ranger's Zodiacal planisphere, and an explanatory plate. By J. M. Ashmand. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    But, iu the course of translation, continual references have been also had to various editions of the original text, in order to ascertain the proper acceptation of “ work, which, having hitherto existed only iu Greek*, is now, in its “ Latin dress, accessible to the curiosity of all persons. This Para- “ phrase of Proclus on the Telrabiblos of Ptolemy was translated a “ few years ago by Leo Allatius, a Greek by birth, eminently skilled “ in the learning of his own nation, as well as in Latin literature, “ and already celebrated for other writings in both languages. He u lives, I have understood, in Rome, in the family of Cardinal Biscia, “ and holds some office in the Vatican Library. He undertook this “ present work, however, for his own private gratification, and that “ of certain friends; but when writings compiled with this view “ have once quitted their author’s hands, it will often happen that “ they have also, at the same time, escaped his controul. So this “ offspring of Allatius, having emerged from Rome, arrived at Ve- “ nice, from whence it was forwarded to me by a certain great per- “ sonage of illustrious rank, in order that 1 might cause it to be “ printed. The names of Ptolemy and Proclus, so celebrated among “ mathematicians and philosophers, besides the subject of the work 4‘ itself, seemed to me a sufficient warrant for committing it to the 44 press. Whereupon I delayed not to avail myself of the advantages “ I possessed in having access to our excellent and most accurate “ typographers, the Elzevirs, and I earnestly solicited them to pub- 44 lish it: they, in their love for the commonwealth of letters, took “ upon themselves the charge of printing it in the form you see. “ You will learn from it, inquisitive Reader, how much power the “ stars have over the atmosphere and all sublunary things: for the • This assertion is applicable only to Proclus’s Paraphrase. There were several prior translations of the original Tetrabiblos in Latin and Arabic; and it appears by an extract from the Bibliotheca Graeca of Fabricius [which will be found in a subsequent page], tha^ a Latin version, done from the Arabic, was printed at Venice as early as the year 1403.