HERO (HERON) OF ALEXANDRIA - FOUNDATION OF HYDRAULICS.

Spiritalium liber. A Federico Commandino Urbinate, ex Graeco, nuper in Latinum conversis. Cum Privilegio Gregorij XIII. Pont. Max.

      Urbini, (D. Frisolini), 1575. Small 4to. Fine recent full vellum in old style with written title onback. Titlepage + 80 leaves (title unnumb. + F 1-80 with 4 leaves misnumb., e.g. F70 instead of 80). The dedicationleaf (unnumb.) after title missing. Text complete, fine and clean with broad margins. One large initial in woodcut and 89 large textillustrations in woodcut. ¶ First edition and the first printed work by Hero. It is Hero's main work, and it stimulated the interest and contributed substantially to the interest in pneumatics that arose suddenly in the late 16th century and led to the work of Toricelli and Boyle. The "Pneumatics" was not published in Greek until 1693. It is one of the major sources to our knowledge of the technics and mechanics of Antiquity, and the many hydraulic and mechanical inventions by Hero is here depicted for the first time in print. The work includes studies of pneumatics and mechanics and include 89 illustrations of different inventions, such as siphons, fountains, engines, an account of a small stationary steam-engine (whic is of the form now known as Avery's patent), the double-force pump etc., which "by the union of (compressed) air, earth, fire, and water, and the concurrence of...elementary principles..., supply the most pressing wants of the human life, (or) produce amazement and alarm." The book describes many gadgets and magical tricks and includes the first suggestion of a steam engine (see f. 52). - Sarton, Introduction...Vol. I pp. 208 ff. - Adams H:369 - Poggendorff I: 1084.