
4 0 c m
34cm
actual image size: 26cm x 32cm
Description
Woodcut showing the planets of Jupiter and Mars personified, together with symbols for their associated signs of the zodiac. Mars, the god of war, is shown as a knight in a suit of armour, with sword and shield. Illustration from 'Compilatio...de astrorum scientia' (Compilation of knowledge of stars) by Leopoldus, Duke of Austria, published in Augsburg in 1489. Leopoldus was an Austrian astronomer who lived in the middle or second half of the thirteenth century. The 'Compilatio' was a collection of Latin translations from Arabic astronomical works and was divided into ten books. It is one of the earliest astronomical treatises in a common language and is embellished with numerous woodcuts of horoscopes, constellations and planets.
Image Details
Image Ref.
10436811
© Science Museum / Science & Society Picture Library