A Centaur in London: Reading and Observation in Early Modern Science

Early modern naturalists valued both reading and observation, which were not as distinct as previously thought. Reading books was a form of observation, especially when it came to rare and unusual phenomena. A Centaur in London combines the history of scholarly reading and scientific observation to argue for the sustained importance of both throughout the Renaissance.

Format: Hardback
Length: 344 pages
Publication date: 25 April 2023
Publisher: Johns Hopkins University Press

Historians have long debated the origins of the sciences in early modern Europe, with a prevailing narrative suggesting a shift from book-based knowledge to knowledge of things. This narrative emphasizes the rise of empiricism, which emphasized experiential proof over the authority of ancient sources. However, Fabian Kraemer challenges this narrative by arguing that the practices of textual erudition and observational empiricism were not as distinct as traditionally believed. In his book "A Centaur in London," Kraemer demonstrates that reading books and reading the book of nature shared many commonalities. He suggests that reading texts was itself a form of observation, particularly when dealing with rare and unusual phenomena like monsters. Naturalists relied on written reports from others who had witnessed such events, and the connections between compiling examples from texts and from observation were particularly close in such cases.

Kraemer's book combines the history of scholarly reading with the history of scientific observation to argue for the sustained importance of both throughout the Renaissance. It provides a nuanced and textured portrait of early modern naturalists at work, highlighting the ways in which they drew on both textual erudition and observational empiricism to understand the natural world. Through his analysis, Kraemer challenges the traditional narrative of the Scientific Revolution and offers a more complex understanding of the origins and development of the sciences in early modern Europe.

Weight: 612g
Dimension: 229 x 152 x 29 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781421446318