Pliny the elder, tireless researcher and writer, is author of the encyclopedic natural history, in 37 books, an unrivaled compendium of roman knowledge. Volume 78 of bohns classical library the natural history of pliny, henry thomas riley. In pliny s 37 volumes of natural history, volume 1 mostly summarized the remaining 36 books. Pliny the elder, tireless researcher and writer, is author of the encyclopedic natural history, in 37 books, an unrivale. In these subjects he could give consummate pleasure, selling them for more than other artists received for their large pictures natural history, book xxxv.
The scope of its subject matter and the strangeness of its organising principles are almost unique in surviving latin literature. The natural history, divided into 37 libri, or books, was completed, except for finishing touches, in ad 77. Explicit nomenclature and classification in plinys natural. Pliny the elder, who died during the eruption of vesuvius in 79 a. Hese books, containing the history of nature, which a few days since i. The project gutenberg ebook of the natural history of pliny. Links to translation of pliny the elder, natural history, by h. Plinys natural history project gutenberg selfpublishing. Pliny the elders most popular book is natural history. The 37volume history had a table of contents that, when translated into english, required more than 70 pages. In writing natural history, pliny or his assistants extracted roughly 20,000 facts from 2,000 volumes by 100 authors. Book pdf ocr text metadata dublin core this volume is part of a multivolume set.
The project gutenberg ebook of the natural history of pliny, vol i. The natural history of pliny, volume 5 bohns classical library the natural history of pliny, henry thomas riley. Table of contents of the others and of authorities. This is in the form of a covering letter from pliny, to accompany the gift of his treatise on natural history to his friend vespasian caesar i. Utf8 start of this project gutenberg ebook natural history of pliny, vol 1 produced by turgut dincer, brian wilcox and the online distributed proofreading team at this file was produced from images generously made available by the internet archive. Mingling acute observation with often wild speculation, it offers a fascinating view of the world as it was understood in the first century ad, whether describing the danger of diving for sponges, the first waterclock, or the use of asses milk to remove wrinkles. An insular copy of pliny s naturalis historia leiden ub vlf 4 fol 433 writing in context. 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. Sep 01, 20 on the problem of using categories of modern sciences as regards ancient natural history and pliny in particular, see french 1994, p.
Pliny s natural history, in thirtyseven books 3 volumes in 1, covering first ten books. But despite its apparent singularity, and despite pliny s rhetorical insistence on its originality in his preface, there has been very little speculation as to where the natural history might fit in the landscape of roman. The appendix note puts the whole thing into perspective. This summarium takes up all of book one of the natural history, listing. Book vii of the natural history provides a detailed examination of the human animal and is. Speaking from my own level of familiarity with the other books available from pliny s era, i personally would recommend to the reader perhaps giving letters of the younger pliny a read before taking on the natural history. How the water is connected with the earth of the naviga tion of the sea and the. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read pliny the elder. In the preface, dedicated to titus who became emperor shortly before pliny s death, pliny justified the title and explained his purpose on utilitarian grounds as the study of the nature of things, that is, life preface. The work, which was largely complete by 77 ce, is divided into 37 books and covers such. Pliny, a roman scholar, intended the natural history as an encyclopedia of all the knowledge of the classical world.
According to pliny, he painted barbers shops, cobblers stalls, asses, eatables and similar subjects, earning for himself the name of rhyparographos painter of dirtlow things. The 37 books of the natural history cover astronomy, geography, zoology, botany, mineralogy, and contemporary technology. Pliny the elder 2379 ce, tireless researcher and writer, is author of the encyclopedic natural history, in 37 books, an unrivaled. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the us or from the uk, depending on stock availability. Pliny devised a summarium, or list of contents, at the beginning of the work that was later interpreted by modern printers as a table of contents.
Pliny scorns the more scientific grrek medicine, because many doctors would be quacks, and. Unusually, the entire remarkable work it contains over a million words has survived intact it is one of the most substantial ancient works available to modern readers. The digital loeb classical library extends the founding mission of james loeb with an interconnected, fully searchable, perpetually growing virtual library of all that is important in greek and latin literature. Mar 17, 2021 contents of pliny s natural history divided into thirtyseven books preface.
Download citation pliny the elders natural history. The natural history of pliny volume 6 digital collections. Goddard and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. Pliny the elder pliny, the elder a wikipedia article about this author is available pliny, the elder.
Pliny the elder has 287 books on goodreads with 4494 ratings. Mathematical and metrological survey of the universe. The natural history of pliny digital collections national. Philemon hollands english translation of 1605 has influenced literature ever since. Books by pliny, the elder sorted by popularity project. The natural history of pliny, volume 1 of 6 by pliny, the elder author. The following is an adaptation of pliny the elder, the natural history, trans. Elders natural history into german, together with a commentary. 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. Pliny the elder pliny, the elder the online books page. As one of the largest and most comprehensive surviving works from the roman empire, pliny the elders natural history offers a rare glimpse into the scholarship of the ancient world.
Pliny the elder was the uncle to pliny the younger, not his father, but reading the younger pliny s letters is first. Pliny the elder 2379 ce, tireless researcher and writer, is author of the encyclopedic natural history, in 37 books, an unrivaled compendium of roman knowledge. Pliny the elder, tireless researcher and writer, is author of the encyclopedic natural history, in 37 books, an unrivaled compendium of roman knowledge the contents of the books are as follows. Pliny s natural history is an astonishingly ambitious work that ranges from astronomy to art and from geography to zoology. American museum of natural history handbook series no. The natural history of pliny volume 6 uniform titles. 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. Managing food storage in the roman empire sciencedirect.
The natural history which is actually a sort of encyclopedia of roman wisdom and prejudices has probably fallen out of favour because the first two books are surprisingly tedious. The natural history was one of the first ancient european texts to be printed, in venice in 1469. Pliny the elder wrote the natural history, an encyclopaedic work of uneven accuracy that was an authority on scientific matters up to the middle ages. The natural history has been translated into english by h. Jul 24, 2018 on pliny s negotiation of his relationship to titus in the preface, see mary beagon, the elder pliny on the human animal. 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.
Pliny the elder, tireless researcher and writer, is author of the encyclopedic natural history, in 37 books. He claimed to have recorded 20,000 pieces of information, although modern scholars say he underestimated his own output. Pliny the elder, the natural history john bostock, m. The project gutenberg ebook of the natural history of. Click on the l symbols to go to the latin text of each chapter. Pliny the elder, the natural history exploring celtic. It is one of the largest single works to have survived from the roman empire to the. Morello, pliny and the encyclopaedic addressee, 150151.
The natural history of pliny, volume 1 of 6 the elder pliny 882 downloads the natural history of pliny, volume 6 of 6 the elder pliny 173 downloads the natural history of pliny, volume 2 of 6 the elder pliny 166 downloads. This edition of book 31 and 37 is part of the first modern translation of pliny the. Pliny s work was the first scientific book issued using the newlyinvented printing press, in 1469. Natural history books 3335 9 0674994337, 9780674994331. Mingling acute observation with often wild speculation, it offers a fascinating view of the world as it was understood in the first century ad, whether describing the danger of diving for sponges, the first waterclock, or the use of asses milk. Pliny s natural history in thirtyseven books volume 2 1851hardcover pliny, philemon holland. Pliny the elder wrote the worlds first encyclopedia. Natural history, volume ii, books 37 loeb classical library no. In this web version, many of the place names have been altered to reproduce the latin spellings for instance, massilia instead of marseilles. Pliny himself defines his scope as the natural world, or life. The works subject area is thus not limited to what is today understood by natural history. Plinys influence is based on his ability to methodically assemble previously unrelated facts, his perceptiveness, and his readable stories, but his work contains unsupported claims, fables, and exaggerations. The table below is a summary based on modern names for topics.
His natural history contained over a million words in 37 volumes. 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 attempted to document all known facts about the natural world. In thirtyseven books, volumes pliny s natural history. Aug 22, 2020 this was a major concern in antiquity, and latin authors such as pliny the elder and varro noted different storage practices, claiming that unprocessed grain could be stored in sealed pits for as long as fifty years pliny natural history 18.
Pliny the elders natural history is a vast encyclopaedia, surveying natural phenomena from cosmology to biology, medicine to magic. Grain would optimally be stored in an environment with moisture content at 15% or less c. Pliny the elder, roman savant and author of the celebrated natural history, an encyclopedic work of uneven accuracy that was an authority on scientific matters up to the middle ages. Cnidus 86, cos 25, samos 100, chios 94, mitylene 65, tenedos 49, cape sigeum 12, bosphorus 312, cape carambis 350, mouth of lake maeotis. Plinys natural history is an astonishingly ambitious work that ranges from astronomy to art and from geography to zoology. The following table contains links to the individual books in the translation. The natural history book vii with book viii 4 ebook written by pliny the elder. The new title is longer, less easy for editors to guess, does not name the author, and has no precedent in common usage, so it might be thought not much of an improvement. In 37 books, pliny the eldernot to be confused with his nephew, pliny the youngercovers botany, zoology, astronomy, geology, geography, mineralogy, and how each of these interact with roman life.
825 1027 1227 1108 515 706 44 6 1527 1337 84 1005 899 470 449 1582 649 1293 1204 299 1068 1224 17 97 1300 463 5 1084 487 1518 332 661 617 573 50 1120 992