C. Plinii Secundi Naturalis Historiæ
by Pliny the Elder
Pliny, the Elder (23-79 AD) was an author, scholar, and statesman of ancient Rome. His most notable work is his 37 volume Natural History.[1] Up until Pliny’s time, science had been an area of Greek expertise, but Pliny “Romanized” it.[2] Pliny was very thorough in his coverage of natural phenomena and approached it from a very stoic point of view. He believed nature is fundamentally good because God created it.[3]
Naturalis Historiæ is broken into two main sections of eighteen volumes each. The first is a description of nature itself, and the second is a discussion of nature’s relation to man.[4] His vast knowledge is attributed to his habit of continuous study by his nephew, Pliny the younger, in one of his letters. Pliny the younger claimed that he was so diligent that when “In the country his whole time was devoted to study, excepting only when he bathed.”[5] Pliny the elder died in pursuit of scientific knowledge when he decided to investigate the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius (a trip that soon turned to an evacuation of the towns in danger.)[6] Pliny probably succumbed to an asthma attack which was brought on by sulfurous fumes.[7]
Bibliographic Information
Author: Pliny the Elder.
Title: C. Plinii Secundi Naturalis Historiæ.
Publication Info: Lugd. Batav. & Roterodami: Apud Hackios, a 1669.
Edition:
Evidence for Inclusion in Wythe's Library
Description of the Wolf Law Library's copy
Contains bookplates of George Paterson of Castle Huntley, Esq.
View this book in William & Mary's online catalog.
External Links
References
- ↑ Jona Lendering, "Pliny the elder", Livius: Articles on Ancient History (August 2012), accessed October 11, 2013, http://www.livius.org/pi-pm/pliny/pliny_e3.html.
- ↑ Ibid.
- ↑ Ibid.
- ↑ Ibid.
- ↑ Marcus Tullius Cicero and Gaius Plinius Caecilius Secundus Letters and Treatises of Cicero and Pliny, The Harvard Classics, 9, ed. William Melmoth (New York: P. F. Collier & Son, 1909), 233.
- ↑ Ibid, 284-288.
- ↑ Lendering, "Pliny the elder."
