Galileo's Muse: Renaissance Mathematics and the Arts

Mark Austin Peterson

Published by Harvard University Press 2011

Galileo's Muse

Renaissance Mathematics and the Arts

Mark Austin Peterson

https://doi.org/10.4159/harvard.9780674062979

Overview
Contents

About this book

Mark Peterson makes an extraordinary claim in this fascinating book focused around the life and thought of Galileo: it was the mathematics of Renaissance arts, not Renaissance sciences, that became modern science. Galileo's Muse argues that painters, poets, musicians, and architects brought about a scientific revolution that eluded the philosopher-scientists of the day, steeped as they were in a medieval cosmos and its underlying philosophy.

According to Peterson, the recovery of classical science owes much to the Renaissance artists who first turned to Greek sources for inspiration and instruction. Chapters devoted to their insights into mathematics, ranging from perspective in painting to tuning in music, are interspersed with chapters about Galileo's own life and work. Himself an artist turned scientist and an avid student of Hellenistic culture, Galileo pulled together the many threads of his artistic and classical education in designing unprecedented experiments to unlock the secrets of nature.

In the last chapter, Peterson draws our attention to the Oratio de Mathematicae laudibus of 1627, delivered by one of Galileo's students. This document, Peterson argues, was penned in part by Galileo himself, as an expression of his understanding of the universality of mathematics in art and nature. It is "entirely Galilean in so many details that even if it is derivative, it must represent his thought," Peterson writes. An intellectual adventure, Galileo’s Muse offers surprising ideas that will capture the imagination of anyone—scientist, mathematician, history buff, lover of literature, or artist—who cares about the humanistic roots of modern science.

Author / Editor information

PetersonMark Austin:

Mark Peterson is Professor of Physics and Mathematics on the Alumnae Foundation, Mount Holyoke College.

Reviews

Peterson's book portrays Galileo in a wonderfully fresh perspective. Over several decades I have steeped myself in Galileo biographies, and it's really rare to find an account as intriguing as this one.
-- Owen Gingerich

Galileo's Muse explores a wealth of intriguing connections between the arts and the birth of modern science, presented with thought and verve. Mark Peterson's excitement shines through on every page
-- Peter Pesic, author of Sky in a Bottle and Labyrinth: A Search for the Hidden Meaning of Science

Galileo's Muse is a brilliant study that lucidly explains the mathematics central to innovations in the Renaissance arts and sciences. Peterson's expertise as a mathematician and physicist gives this book a level of detail and insight that will offer much to historians of art, science, literature alike.
-- Arielle Saiber, Associate Professor of Italian, Bowdoin College

Peterson advances the hypothesis that it was the interplay of mathematics in the arts, not the philosophically-bent sciences of the day that evolved into our modern sciences.
-- Publishers Weekly

Peterson believes there is a fresh and important story to tell about Galileo's roots in Renaissance humanism. He tells that story well and makes the fascinating argument that Galileo's interest in applied geometry arose not from the study of orthodox philosophy and mathematics but from his interest in the application of geometry to poetry, painting, music and architecture. He makes this case well.
-- Paul Monk The Australian

Mark A. Peterson takes us on a lively journey...Galileo's Muse is a welcome addition to the growing literature on art and science in the early modern period.
-- Alexander Marr Times Literary Supplement

Topics

Frontmatter Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	i
Contents Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	v
Prologue Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
1. Galileo, Humanist Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	3
2. The Classical Legacy Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	33
Poetry
3. The Plan of Heaven Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	67
4. The Vision of God Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	81
Painting
5. The Power of the Lines Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	95
6. The Skin of the Lion Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	125
Music
7. The Orphic Mystery Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	149
8. Kepler and the Music of the Spheres Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	174
Architecture
9. Figure and Form Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	197
10 The Dimensions of Hell Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	214
11. Mathematics Old and New Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	237
12. Transforming Mathematics Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	255
13. The Oration Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	272
Epilogue Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	292
Notes Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	299
Acknowledgments Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	321
Index Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	323

Language: English
Publisher: Harvard University Press
Audience: General/trade;
Pages
- Main content: 352
Illustrations
- Other: 22 line illustrations; 2 halftones

eBook

Published: October 17, 2011
ISBN: 9780674062979