The natural history, which was dedicated to titus in 77, was. Pliny s natural history, either directly or indirectly through quotes by later authors, greatly influenced the development of the bestiary and other medieval beast literature. Featured texts all books all texts latest this just in smithsonian libraries fedlink us genealogy lincoln collection. In thirtyseven volumes, he does describe the full complexity of nature. Pliny the elder, roman savant and author of the celebrated natural history, an encyclopedic work of uneven accuracy that was an authority on scientific matters up to the middle ages. The table below is a summary based on modern names for topics. The roman naturalist pliny the elders encyclopaedic natural history, composed in 37 books, remains an unrivalled compendium of roman knowledge. His nephew pliny the younger gives an indication how devoted his uncle was to reading and studying, which was like working to him. The project gutenberg ebook of the natural history of pliny, volume 1 of 6, by pliny the elder this ebook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the united states and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever.
Pliny devised a summarium, or list of contents, at the beginning of the work that was later interpreted by modern printers as a table of contents. Pliny the elder, tireless researcher and writer, is author of the encyclopedic natural history, in 37 books, an unrivaled compendium of roman knowledge. Natural history is an account that can only be given by a. He was a naturalist and a philosopher, a soldier and an admiral, and a tireless. We would like to show you a description here but the site wont allow us. Pliny the elder died in ad 79, while attempting the rescue, by ship, of a friend and his family, in stabiae, from the eruption of mount vesuvius, which already had destroyed the cities of pompeii and herculaneum. Unusually, the entire remarkable work it contains over a million words has survived intact it is one of the most substantial ancient works available to modern readers.
Selections from the history of the world, commonly called the natural history of c. His greatest and only surviving work, the natural history, has been called one of the most influential books ever written in latin pliny whose full name was gaius plinius secundus, was born at comum in the. The first book is a catalogue of sources, which is followed by two. This book is available with additional data at biodiversity heritage library. The homepage for plinys natural history the historia naturalis of c.
Pliny the elder born gaius plinius secundus, ad 2379 was a roman author, naturalist and natural philosopher, a naval and army commander of the early roman empire, and friend of emperor vespasian spending most of his spare time studying, writing, and investigating natural and geographic phenomena in the field, pliny wrote the encyclopedic naturalis historia natural history, which. Natural historypage from an italian edition of natural history by. Pliny himself died while investigating the volcanic eruption that destroyed pompeii in ad 79, and the natural curiosity that brought about his death is also very much evident in the natural history a book that proved highly influential right up until the renaissance and that his nephew, pliny the younger, described as full of variety as. Pliny the elder was a roman natural philosopher who lived during the 1st century. Barclay, 184749, also by philemon holland and wernerian club page images at hathitrust pliny, the elder. In 37 books, pliny the eldernot to be confused with his nephew, pliny the youngercovers botany, zoology, astronomy, geology, geography, mineralogy, and how each of these interact with roman life. The work, which was largely complete by 77 ce, is divided into 37 books and covers such. Plinys 37 book naturalis historia is a stupor mundi, an encyclopedia of everything there was to knowwhether it was worth knowing or notin. His greatest and only surviving work, the natural history, has been called one of the most influential books ever written in latin. Natural history was a 37 volume encyclopedia that covered topics ranging from anthropology, astronomy, and mineralogy to geography, botany, and zoology. Pliny the elder biography facts, childhood, family life. Pliny the elder sailed into danger when vesuvius erupted, and never returned, but a body found a century ago covered in jewelry like a cabaret ballerina may really have been his. The natural history was one of the first ancient european texts to be printed, in venice in 1469.
The project gutenberg ebook of the natural history of pliny, vol i. As one of the largest and most comprehensive surviving works from the roman empire, pliny the elders natural history offers a rare glimpse into the scholarship of the ancient world. Gaius plinius secundus ad 232479, called pliny the elder. This book is a gem for many reasons, as it is the single largest written text to have survived the roman empire. A multifaceted personality, he was also an author, naturalist, and a naval and army commander of the early roman empire. Pliny the younger refers to tacituss reliance upon his uncles book, the history of the german wars. The world, and this whatever other name men have chosen to designate the sky whose vaulted roof encircles the universe is fitly believed to be a deity, eternal, immeasurable, a being that never began.
Pliny, the man, lived in the first century 23 to 79 a. Pompeii hero pliny the elder may have been found 2,000 years later. His natural history contained over a million words in 37 volumes pliny attempted to document all known facts about the natural world. Buy natural history penguin classics reprint by pliny the elder, john healey, john healey isbn. He is always noble and serious, full of the love of justice and virtue. Search the history of over 424 billion web pages on the internet. Pliny s natural history in thirtyseven books london. The project gutenberg ebook of the natural history of pliny.
Philemon hollands english translation of 1605 has influenced literature ever since. I ran a first proofreading pass immediately after entering each book, so that. After much research in beer books, brainstorming, and deliberation, we came up with pliny the elder. He is best known for his work plinys natural history which was in. Ancient uses of the elder plant in natural history by pliny. Pliny the elder wrote the worlds first encyclopedia. The zoology chapters books 8 to 11 are frequently quoted, though pliny is not always acknowledged as the. Seeing the elder plinys maniacal working habits, one starts to understand. Publication date 184749 topics natural history publisher london printed for the club by g. Plinys natural history, either directly or indirectly through quotes by later authors, greatly influenced the development of the bestiary and other medieval beast literature. Pliny the elder simple english wikipedia, the free. The world, and this whatever other name men have chosen to designate the sky whose vaulted roof encircles the universe is fitly believed to be a deity, eternal, immeasurable, a being that never began to exist and never will perish. The natural history of pliny, volume 1 of 6 by pliny, the elder author.
The project gutenberg ebook of the natural history of. Book i summarizes the entire contents of the work, listing the authors and. He is best known for his work pliny s natural history which was in latin and explored the natural world. He claimed to have recorded 20,000 pieces of information, although modern scholars say he underestimated his own output. Pliny the elder, tireless researcher and writer, is author of the encyclopedic natural history, in 37 books, an unrivaled compendium of roman. Pliny the elder, who died during the eruption of vesuvius in 79 a. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. The natural history there is no book so bad that some good cannot be got out of it, pliny the elder used to say, and he read everything that he could obtain. If one attempts to research the historical uses of the elder plant, one will see that most texts point to the historical book natural history by pliny the elder, a roman author and naval commander who lived until 79 a. In ad 77, pliny published his famous 37 volume work naturalis historia or natural history. Pliny the elder, natural history loeb classical library. Pliny was a compiler, a gatherer and recorder of information. But over the centuries these mistakes have revealed more about plinys world than the accuracies.
But the country people, and, indeed, some whole nations offer milk to the gods. Complete works of pliny the elder by pliny the elder. Hese books, containing the history of nature, which a few days since i. The work, which was largely complete by 77 ce, is divided into 37 books and covers such subjects as botany, zoology, and astronomy. Natural history, volume x, books 36 37 loeb classical library no. Delphis ancient classics series provides ereaders with the wisdom of the classical world, with both english translations and the original latin texts.
Plinys natural history is an astonishingly ambitious work that ran. Links to translation of pliny the elder, natural history. Natural history encyclopedic scientific work by pliny the elder. Many of his works have been lost to history, but his main work the historia naturalis natural history remains almost complete. It is divided into 37 books across 10 volumes, and was intended to cover the breadth of ancient knowledge. Ancient uses of the elder plant in natural history by. Top american libraries canadian libraries universal library community texts project gutenberg biodiversity heritage library childrens library.
For my own part, i look upon the whole of these statements as untrue, and i do not believe that in our time there has ever been a precious stone seen with such a. Plinys natural history in thirtyseven books london. Pliny the elder is also the uncle of pliny the younger, whose letters are definitely worth a read, and outline the tragic and incredible nature of pliny the. Sep 24, 2018 if one attempts to research the historical uses of the elder plant, one will see that most texts point to the historical book natural history by pliny the elder, a roman author and naval commander who lived until 79 a. The natural history of pliny translated by john bostock and henry t. Spending most of his spare time studying, writing or investigating natural and geographic phenomena in the field, he wrote an encyclopedic work, natural history naturalis historia, which became a model for many subsequent encyclopedic texts. Natural history wikisource, the free online library.
Vinnie had made a double ipa at blind pig brewing co. Links to translation of pliny the elder, natural history pliny the elder, who died during the eruption of vesuvius in 79 a. Plinys ordered natural landscape is a coherent whole, offering the reader a. Although only one of his works, natural history, has survived, pliny the elder became famous for that work. Natural history pliny project gutenberg selfpublishing.