Astronomical Images : Armillary sphere

Pseudo-Proclus

Astronomical Images

<p style='text-align: justify;'>The armillary sphere is here used as a title-page figure for an edition of Thomas Linacre's (c. 1460-1524) translation of Proclus' <i>De sphaera</i>. Linacre was a humanist scholar and physician, who brought the lessons of Renaissance humanism from Italy to England after travelling to the Continent in the latter part of the fifteenth century. He also founded the Royal College of Physicians in London. At the start of the sixteenth century, Linacre was called to court to act as tutor to Arthur, Prince of Wales, and the translation of Proclus to which this title-page belongs is thought to have been produced for Prince Arthur's purposes. The image of the armillary sphere makes an excellent visual introduction to an elementary book on astronomy, since the instrument acted as a model of the Universe and encapsulated knowledge of the heavens. By getting to grips with the rings of the armillary sphere, a student would come to know the circles used to describe and measure the heavens and the Earth. The fact that these rings are labelled on the title-page renders them familiar even to someone who is not yet familiar with the instrument. The armillary sphere is also a powerful symbol of astronomy, since it suggests both theoretical and practical knowledge, which had to work alongside each other in pursuit of astronomical learning.</p>