Agricola, Georgius, De re metallica, 1912/1950

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              <s>Agricola seems to have been engaged in the preparation of
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              De Re
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              Metallica
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              for a period of over twenty years, for we first hear of the book in a
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              letter from Petrus Plateanus, a schoolmaster at Joachimsthal, to the great
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              humanist, Erasmus,
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              16
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              in September, 1529. He says: “The scientific world
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              will be still more indebted to Agricola when he brings to light the books
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              De Re Metallica
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              and other matters which he has on hand.” In the dedication
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              of
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              De Mensuris et Ponderibus
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              (in 1533) Agricola states that he means to
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              publish twelve books
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              De Re Metallica,
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              if he lives. </s>
              <s>That the appearance of this
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              work was eagerly anticipated is evidenced by a letter from George Fabricius
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              to Valentine Hertel:
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              17
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              “With great excitement the books
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              De Re Metallíca
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              are being awaited. </s>
              <s>If he treats the material at hand with his usual zeal,
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              he will win for himself glory such as no one in any of the fields of literature
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              has attained for the last thousand years.” According to the dedication of
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              De Veteríbus et Novis Metallís,
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              Agricola in 1546 already looked forward to
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              its early publication. </s>
              <s>The work was apparently finished in 1550, for the
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              dedication to the Dukes Maurice and August of Saxony is dated in December of
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              that year. </s>
              <s>The eulogistic poem by his friend, George Fabricius, is dated in
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              1551.</s>
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              <s>The publication was apparently long delayed by the preparation of the
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              woodcuts; and, according to Mathesius,
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              18
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              many sketches for them were
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              prepared by Basilius Wefring. </s>
              <s>In the preface of
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              De Re Metallíca,
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              Agricola
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              does not mention who prepared the sketches, but does say: “I have hired
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              illustrators to delineate their forms, lest descriptions which are conveyed
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              by words should either not be understood by men of our own times, or
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              should cause difficulty to posterity.” In 1553 the completed book was
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              sent to Froben for publication, for a letter
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              19
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              from Fabricius to Meurer in
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              March, 1553, announces its dispatch to the printer. </s>
              <s>An interesting letter
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              20
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              from the Elector Augustus to Agricola, dated January 18, 1555, reads:
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              “Most learned, dear and faithful subject, whereas you have sent to the Press
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              a Latin book of which the title is said to be
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              De Rebus Metallícis,
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              which has
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              been praised to us and we should like to know the contents, it is our gracious
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              command that you should get the book translated when you have the
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              opportunity into German, and not let it be copied more than once or be
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              printed, but keep it by you and send us a copy. </s>
              <s>If you should need a
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              writer for this purpose, we will provide one. </s>
              <s>Thus you will fulfil our
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              gracious behest.” The German translation was prepared by Philip Bechius,
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              a Basel University Professor of Medicine and Philosophy. </s>
              <s>It is a wretched
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              work, by one who knew nothing of the science, and who more especially had no
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              appreciation of the peculiar Latin terms coined by Agricola, most of which
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              </s>
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