Sounding the Depths of Providence: Mineral (Re)generation, Natural Resources, and Human-Environment Interaction in the Early Modern Period

Project Information

SOUNDEPTH

Grant agreement ID: 101019781

DOI

10.3030/101019781

Project closed

EC signature date 17 March 2021

Start date 1 September 2021

End date 31 August 2024

Funded under

• EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions

Total cost

€ 251 002,56

EU contribution

€ 251 002,56

Coordinated by

UNIVERSITA CA' FOSCARI VENEZIA
Italy

Periodic Reporting for period 2 - SOUNDEPTH (Sounding the Depths of Providence: Mineral (Re)generation, Natural Resources, and Human-Environment Interaction in the Early Modern Period)

Reporting period: 2023-09-01 to 2024-08-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

SOUNDEPTH's subject is the evolution of the early modern debate on ore generation and of our understanding of geological phenomena and natural resources. The project has been carried out through:

- acquisition of scientific knowledge/skills;
- analysis of sources;
- confrontation with secondary literature;
- replication in laboratory of experiments/exploration of historical mining sites.

The outgoing phase of the project has focused mainly on the analysis of texts, the acquisition of new knowledge, and laboratory replications of alchemical/chymical experiments. The secondment period and the incoming phase have been devoted essentially to refining existing expertise and to the exploration of historical mining sites. Research outputs have been produced throughout the duration of the project.

CONTEXT, STATE OF THE ART, SOCIETAL RELEVANCE OF THE ISSUE ADDRESSED
The origin/growth of ores was a central issue for mining and natural philosophy in early modern Europe and acted as a catalyst for interaction between miners, craftsmen, technicians, scholars, alchemists. On the one side, mining sites became field laboratories where mineral processes were observed/interpreted; on the other, laboratories became places where the replication of these processes was attempted. Above and underground, organic analogies became a key tool in the attempt to rationalize observations and experiments. This tangle of theories and practices interacted with the roots of experimental science, whose advent did not entail an uncritical rejection of pre-existing knowledge.
This debate had a crucial influence on the evolution of human-environment relationship, an influence whose extent is yet to be fully determined. Shedding new light on how our understanding of mineral resources changed through the centuries can offer potential for investigating the changes occurred in our perception of natural exploitability, renewability, exhaustibility. This can help us to better reconstruct the emergence of humans as geological/environmental agents and, therefore, contribute towards a more historically contextualized and pragmatic approach to the environmental debate.

OBJECTIVES
SOUNDEPTH’s main goal was to understand how the early modern study of mineral generation evolved in Europe, and how the theoretical/practical knowledge underlying this debate influenced the rise and development of the Earth sciences and the role of humans as geological/environmental agents. The project has aimed to:

- Provide new insights into the history of the study of geological phenomena and natural resources;
- Shed new light on the evolution of the human-environment system;
- Contribute to the progress of the environmental debate;
- Shape an interdisciplinary approach to the study of the history of science and environmental history;
- Contribute to the methodological consolidation of the experimental history of science as a research tool.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

The first phase of my project has focused on the identification and analysis of sources/studies, on the acquisition of new knowledge, and on laboratory replications of significant experiments. The secondment and incoming phases have been devoted to refining existing expertise and to exploring mining sites. I have also continued devoting part of my time to the analysis of sources/studies. Research outputs (including publications) have been produced throughout the project. I have combined my research and training with teaching/dissemination activities for students and the scholarly community, and I have engaged in outreach/communication activities for the general public.

1) I have detected and analyzed more than 50 source texts which are relevant to the project. For each source I have provided a list of related studies, a summary and discussion of theories and experiments, an annotation of quotes and experiments of potential interest for replication in laboratory and/or exploration of mining sites.

2) I have detected and analyzed about 280 studies.

3) I have replicated in laboratory 4 experiments and performed the exploration of 3 mining sites which were relevant to my research.

4) I have acquired new scientific and historical knowledge through interdisciplinary training: attendance to seminars, lectures, workshops, and other events organized by academic/research institutions worldwide (98 in total).

5) I have published 4 peer-reviewed papers (2 book chapters, 2 journal articles) and 4 outreach works (4 book chapters). 2 more peer-reviewed contributions are in press and will be published by 2024.

6) I have organized and chaired 5 workshops and I have strengthened my teaching/communication skills by presenting at seminars, lectures, conferences, workshops, etc. (25 in total). I have promoted my project on social media and through flyers/posters/interviews on radio stations and magazines aimed to the general public.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

Through the research work performed:

1) I have highlighted the role of analogies/metaphors in the early modern study of ores. According to my inquiry, one kind of analogy in particular proved to be pervasive and enduring: the use of terms/notions related to plants (botanical model). In analyzing the reasons behind the success of this model, I have traced its historical-cultural roots and considered how these roots branched out into the European scene with various theories. I have also ascertained how the use of plants as "metaphorical benchmarks" for the study of minerals contributed to frame the generation/growth of ores in a providential/punitive view of natural resources, a view which still influences the human-environment relation.

2) I have found out that the adoption of vegetal/organic terms and analogies did not always correspond to vitalistic beliefs. This shared use of metaphors as explanatory tools is revealing of how the premodern mind thought about nature: analogies/metaphors were considered as reliable methods for rationalizing observations and experiments, regardless of their literal or nonliteral interpretation. This helps to understand the enduring success of such analogies throughout the early modern period.

3) The early modern belief in the reliability of analogies for understanding natural phenomena helps to explain why the exploration of mining sites and the replication in laboratory of mineral processes observed underground were often considered a useful method to validate theories and explanations and why, therefore, relying on experimental replications as a tool of historical-scientific research can help us to better understand the debate on mineral ores and its evolution. All the experimental activities performed seem to confirm this consideration: both laboratory replications and explorations have allowed to reduce the "perceptive gap" between the first-hand research of some authors and my understanding of their theories/interpretations.

4) In terms of socio-economic and wider societal implications, the results achieved suggest that the study of the evolution of our understanding of ore generation and of human-environment relation offer potential for investigating further the changes that occurred in our perception of natural exploitability, renewability, exhaustibility. In light of these insights, it is reasonable to argue that the results accomplished provide a contribution to the understanding of the emergence of humans as geological/environmental agents, with important positive effects on the environmental debate.

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