God's Clockmaker: Richard of Wallingford and the Invention of Time - Softcover

North, J. D.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1852855711 ISBN 13: 9781852855710

Publisher: Continuum International Publishing, 2006

Synopsis

Clocks became common in late medieval Europe and the measurement of time began to rule everyday life. "God's Clockmaker: Richard of Wallingford and the Invention of Time" is a biography of England's greatest medieval scientist, a man who solved major practical and theoretical problems to build an extraordinary and pioneering astronomical and astrological clock. Richard of Wallingford (1292-1336), the son of a blacksmith, was a brilliant mathematician with a genius for the practical solution of technical problems. Trained at Oxford, he became a monk and then abbot of the great abbey of St Albans, where he built his clock. Although as abbot he held great power, he was also a tragic figure, becoming a leper. His achievement, nevertheless, is a striking example of the sophistication of medieval science, based on knowledge handed down from the Greeks via the Arabs.

About this title

About the Author

John North, Emeritus Professor of the History of Philosophy and the Exact Sciences, University of Groningen, Fellow of the British Academy.

Edition details

• Publisher: Continuum International Publishing
• Publication date: 2006
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1852855711
• ISBN 13: 9781852855710
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 462