Celestial Treasury
From the Music of the Spheres to the Conquest of Space
- Authors:
- Marc Lachièze-Rey, Centre Commissariat à l'Energie Atomique (CEA), Saclay
- Jean-Pierre Luminet, Observatoire de Paris, Meudon
- Translator: Joe Laredo
- Date Published: July 2001
- availability: Unavailable - out of print December 2010
- format: Hardback
- isbn: 9780521800402
Hardback
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Throughout history, the mysterious dark skies above us have inspired our imaginations in countless ways, influencing our endeavours in science and philosophy, religion, literature and art. Celestial Treasury is a truly beautiful book showing the richness of astronomical theories and illustrations in Western civilization through the ages, exploring their evolution, and comparing ancient and modern throughout. From Greek verse, mediaeval manuscripts and Victorian poetry to spacecraft photographs and computer-generated star charts, the unprecedented wealth of these portrayals is quite breathtaking. How did philosophers and scientists try to explain the order which seems to govern celestial motion? How did geometers and artists measure and map the skies? How many different answers have been proposed for the most fundamental of all questions: When and how did our world come about? Who inhabits the Heavens - gods, angels or extraterrestrials? The answers to these questions can be found among these stunning pages.
Read more- Full colour throughout, it contains nearly 400 truly stunning illustrations from throughout history, many never published before
- The carefully researched and accessible text weaves together ancient and modern theories, telling the story of our fascination with the heavens
- The unusual layout, including fold-outs and asymmetrical pages, allows juxtaposition, comparisons, overviews and simultaneous reading to get the most out of the content
Awards
- French edition was awarded Le Prix du Livre Scientifique de Sciences et Vie 1999 also Le prix special du jury du livre d'Astronomie 1999
Reviews & endorsements
'Impressive in size and sumptuous in production … a stunning array of historical and modern imagery … A book that anybody with the slightest interest in the subject would be delighted to find waiting after the annual visit of the red-coated gentleman with the suborbital reindeer!' P. D. Highley, Astronomy & Geophysics
See more reviews'… a fascinating combination of ancient star maps and illustrations, mixed with modern photographs and computer-generated images of the cosmos.' Astronomy Now
'The artwork for this book is truly beautiful and the accompanying text is literature and thought provoking … an outstanding record of what was probably a remarkable exhibition.' Martin Barstow, The Observatory
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×Product details
- Date Published: July 2001
- format: Hardback
- isbn: 9780521800402
- length: 217 pages
- dimensions: 373 x 273 x 23 mm
- weight: 1.829kg
- contains: 380 colour illus.
- availability: Unavailable - out of print December 2010
Table of Contents
Part I. Celestial Harmony:
1. Geometry and the cosmos
2. The celestial hierarchy
3. The grandeur of space
4. Finite or infinite?
5. The structure of the world
6. Celestial music
7. World systems
Part II. Uranometry:
8. Mapping the sky
9. Naming the stars
10. The development of celestial atlases
11. The depths of space
Part III. The Creation:
12. From myth to myth
13. The metamorphosis of chaos
14. Time and creation
15. The Creator
16. The order of creation
17. The date of creation
18. The theory of evolution
19. The Big Bang
20. A modern creation
Part IV. Creatures of the Sky:
21. Humanity beneath the sky
22. The sky in humanity
23. Humanity in the sky
24. The worlds in the sky.
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