Earle Caley John Richards (4 results)

Hardcover. Condition: Very Good+. Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good. Mylar clear cover protects jacket - tight clean copy. The publication of Theophrastus on Stones is without question an important event for scholars and students interested in the history of pure and applied science. By common consent one of the greatest of the Greek philosophers and naturalists, Theophrastus is still a highly significant figure in the development of mineralogy and other scientific and technological area, yet no modern annotated translation of his treatise. This book, which includes the original text, an English translation, and a commentary, gives the reader---with or without a knowledge of Greek--an invaluable interpretation of the technical aspects of the treatise and the rationale of the processes described in it. Many minds were brought to bear upon the labor involved in an undertaking which required specialized scholarship, both scientific and linguistic. Professional book seller with storefront since 1975. All orders carefully packaged and promptly shipped.

Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. Dust Jacket Condition: Good. RICHARDS, John F. C. (illustrator). 1st Edition. Head and tail of spine rubbed. Endpapers are lightly discoloured towards edges. 'Ex Libris bibliotecae scientiarum de gemmis Magistri Michaelis gardae' paper slip, yellow, is pasted on front free endpaper. Page edges are foxed and lightly stained. This book is in very good condition. Dust wrapper is worn, and creased and torn towards edges. Contains library stickers and tape on spine. It is discoloured, foxed, and stained, mainly on back cover and towards edges. It is creased at spine, else in good condition. *We always describe the faults of our books meticulously but they usually present better than they sound.

Hardcover. Condition: Near Fine. Dust Jacket Condition: Near Fine. 1st Edition. First Edition of this English translation of De lapidibus. vii, 1 leaf, 238 pp. Original cloth. Near Fine, in near fine dust jacket (unclipped). Graduate School Monographs. Contributions in Physical Science. This is the first English translation since that of John Hill (1st ed., 1746; 2nd ed., 1774). 'Among the extant writings Theophrastus' monograph on petrology, De lapidibus, best illustrates his investigation into inanimate compounds of the elements. In this, along with several other works known only from fragments and references, he carries forward the detailed investigation proposed by Aristotle at the end of Meteorologica III. . . . The body of the work is a systematic discussion of stones (3-47) and mineral earths (48-69) found around the Mediterranean and in the farther regions traversed by Alexander's army. Substances are distinguished by visual and tactile qualities and by their behavior, particularly in reaction to fire (9-19). Included are the earliest known Greek references to the use of mineral fuel (16), the pearl (36), the touchstone in texting alloys (45-47), and the manufacture of white lead (56). Of particular interest for the history of technology are the accounts of the preparation of pigments (50-60) and the uses of earths dug from pits (61-69). . . . It is the first methodical study of mineralogy and the only one before Agricola's in the sixteenth century that considers mineral substances for themselves rather than for their curative or magical properties' (D. S. B. XIII: 330-1, citing this edition on p. 333).

Hardcover. Condition: Near Fine in Near Fine DJ. Dust Jacket Condition: dj. First Edition. First Edition. Hardcover. Theophrastus (c. 371-c. 287 BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher and naturalist. A native of Eresos in Lesbos, he was Aristotle's close colleague and successor as head of the Lyceum, the Peripatetic school of philosophy in Athens. A highly significant figure in the development of mineralogy and other technological areas. The body of the work is a systematic discussion of stones (p. 3-47) and mineral earths (p. 48-69) found around the Mediterranean. From the personal library collection of Brian Cotnoir, alchemist, artist and award-winning filmmaker. Author of Practical Alchemy: Guide to the Great Work, The Emerald Tablet, a series of Alchemical 'Zines, Alchemical Meditations, Alchemy: The Poetry of Matter and most recently On Alchemy: Essential Practices and Making Art as Alchemy. He has presented seminars and workshops around the world on various aspects of the alchemy. Khepri Press was started in 2014 as a place to organize and distribute his work. It is a very small press dedicated to alchemical book arts. Some of this work is publishable and others may exist only in manuscript or object form - alchemical results or talismans. Near fine, minor shelfwear, else tight, bright, and unmarred. Green cloth with green and white dj. 8vo. vii, 238pp. Index. Former owner library stamp. Text in Greek and English.