Periodic Reporting for period 1 - TraLA (Transformations of Latin Astronomy, 1000-1250)
Reporting period: 2021-02-01 to 2023-01-31
Medieval astronomy, as with medieval science more generally, remains subject to many popular misunderstandings and negative stereotypes. The findings generated by this project are aimed towards a better understanding of the status of this discipline in the period under investigation. They are intended as the basis for a fundamentally new account of the historically important transformation that occurred in European astronomy during the central Middle Ages, which will advance our understanding of Europe's role in the history of pre-modern science as well as the precise nature of its intellectual debts to the Islamic world. To this end, the project worked towards a thorough re-evaluation of the status of mathematical astronomy in Latin Europe during the watershed period from 1000 to 1250, a time frame that was subsequently expanded to 1000-1300. This re-evaluation was guided by two main themes, viz. (i) the assimilation of new knowledge from Islamic sources and (ii) the practical aspects of medieval astronomy, as manifested by the construction and use of instruments. Addressing these questions required a systematic investigation of the astronomical sources preserved in Latin from the eleventh to thirteenth centuries. Since many of these sources remain unedited and are consequently unknown even to specialists, an initial task was to examine neglected manuscripts from European libraries and to make available unpublished texts. Overall, the project involved the study of over 350 medieval manuscripts and over 150 individual texts, most of them unedited or previously unrecorded. Its outputs include one book/monograph and seven articles. A second book is in progress. Included in these outputs are four critical editions of key texts. Among the numerous new conclusions to which the project has given rise, the following are especially worth highlighting:
- the number of Arabic-to-Latin translations of astronomical texts made in the central Middle Ages was much greater than hitherto assumed. The project has unearthed direct and indirect evidence of previously unknown translations of this nature, including astronomical tables, canons for astronomical tables, and texts on instruments.
- the number of original astronomical Latin writings on mathematical astronomy was much greater than previously realized, with over 150 unique extant works from the period 1100-1300.
- astronomical observations and measurements were more widespread and sophisticated than previously realized, covering a multitude of approaches and applications
- the dissemination of astronomical tables generally preceded the dissemination of texts on theoretical astronomy, a circumstance which in some areas led to the development of non-Ptolemaic interpretations of the models underlying astronomical tables.
- the number of Arabic-to-Latin translations of astronomical texts made in the central Middle Ages was much greater than hitherto assumed. The project has unearthed direct and indirect evidence of previously unknown translations of this nature, including astronomical tables, canons for astronomical tables, and texts on instruments.
- the number of original astronomical Latin writings on mathematical astronomy was much greater than previously realized, with over 150 unique extant works from the period 1100-1300.
- astronomical observations and measurements were more widespread and sophisticated than previously realized, covering a multitude of approaches and applications
- the dissemination of astronomical tables generally preceded the dissemination of texts on theoretical astronomy, a circumstance which in some areas led to the development of non-Ptolemaic interpretations of the models underlying astronomical tables.
During the first six months of the project, we concentrated on the systematic study of medieval codices in Latin containing astronomical material from the eleventh to thirteenth century. Over the duration of the project, the number of codices studied exceeded 350. In a next step, we selected certain sources identified through this process for in-depth study and critical editions. Two major sources ('Ptolomeus et multi sapientum...' by Abraham Ibn Ezra and the 'Liber canonum' by Robert of Chester) were placed at the centre of a new book ('Graeco-Arabic Astronomy for Twelfth-Century Latin Readers'), which sheds light on previously neglected areas of medieval computational astronomy and the reception of Arabic sources in twelfth-century Latin Europe. It includes critical editions and English translations as well as extensive commentaries on the two texts mentioned. Another text that received a critical edition, English translation, and commentary, is a letter on astronomical questions written c.1246 by John of London. These results were published in an article for the journal 'Aestimatio'. We next produced a transcription and in-depth study of a thirteenth-century table of geographic coordinates, showing that it originated in a Greek source (Ptolemy's Hand Tables). These results were published in an article for the journal 'Mediterranea'. A fourth text that was edited critically as part of the project is a previously unknown Latin translation of Ibn al‐Ṣaffār’s treatise on the use of astrolabe, which will be included in a forthcoming article in 'Mediterranea'. In addition to these publications, we prepared further articles on other relevant sources and questions: a study of an astronomical-computistical finger ring ('Anulus') is forthcoming in the 'Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes'; a review essay on the Alfonsine Tables, which is forthcoming in the 'Journal for the History of Astronomy'; a thorough study of the twelfth-century 'Liber de wazalkora'; an article discussing a 'A Newly Identified Treatise on the Tables of Marseilles (Twelfth Century) and Its Non-Ptolemaic Planetary Theory'. A comprehensive book-length study on 'Latin Astronomy in the Central Middle Ages' is currently in progress. Results were also disseminated via lectures, talks, and conference presentations (eight conferences, three seminars and related events, two public outreach events). One of these events was a one-day workshop/conference on “Alternatives to Ptolemy in Medieval Latin Astronomy”, which was organized by our project and hosted by the TCD Long Room Hub on Friday, 7 October 2022.
The project has led to a considerable expansion of our existing knowledge concerning the nature and scope of mathematical astronomy in the central Middle Ages, especially with regards to its practical aspects. It has facilitated the discovery of numerous new sources, including Arabic-to-Latin translations, and generated new insights on core aspects of medieval astronomy such as observation/measurement, computational practice, and planetary models. Its results have been disseminated through public talks to popular and expert audiences and through multiple publications, including peer review articles and a book.