Philosophiae naturalis principia mathematica
05.02.2026 10:00UTC +00:00
Classic
Zum Bieten geht es auf die Webseite
CHRISTIE'S| Auctioneer | CHRISTIE'S |
|---|---|
| Veranstaltungsort | Vereinigtes Königreich, London |
| Aufgeld | see on Website% |
ID 1540275
Los 26 | Philosophiae naturalis principia mathematica
Schätzwert
400000USD $ 400 000 – 600 000
“Perhaps the greatest intellectual stride that it has ever been granted to any man to make" (Einstein).
Fine and unpressed first edition, continental issue (three-line imprint). The Principia elucidates the universal physical laws of gravitation and motion which lie behind phenomena described by Newton's predecessors Copernicus, Galileo and Kepler. Newton establishes the mathematical basis for the motion of bodies in unresisting space (the law of inertia); the motion of fluids and the effect of friction on bodies moving through fluids; and, most importantly, the law of universal gravitation and its unifying role in the cosmos. "For the first time a single mathematical law could explain the motion of objects on earth as well as the phenomena of the heavens ... It was this grand conception that produced a general revolution in human thought, equaled perhaps only by that following Darwin's Origin of Species" (PMM).
Edmond Halley encouraged Newton to write the Principia (Newton acknowledges his contribution in the preface) and saw the work through the press, even bearing the cost of printing since the Royal Society's funds had been depleted. The printing history of the Principia is well documented, and two issues are distinguished, based on the two states of the title-page: one with a 2-line imprint, traditionally denominated the first state; and one with a 3-line imprint, as here, naming the bookseller/exporter Samuel Smith. The present belongs to the latter, scarcer issue, which was largely turned over to Samuel Smith for distribution on the continent. The edition was divided between two compositors working concurrently, one setting the first two books, the other setting the third. W. Todd has identified a number of stop-press corrections, but they cannot be related to either issue. Babson/Newton 10; A.N.L. Munby, "The two title-pages of Newton's Principia" in Notes and Records of the Royal Society 10 (1952); Norman 1586; PMM 161; Wallis 7; Wing N-1049. This copy is no. 286 in Feingold & Svorenčík's "Preliminary census," 2020. Exhibited: "The Heavens Revealed," Chapin Library, Williams College, 2003.
Quarto (245 x 195mm). Folding engraved plate of cometary orbit inserted before page one. Woodcut and typographical diagrams. P4 a cancel correcting the orientation of the diagram on verso; errata inserted before final blank 3O4. (Preface leaf repaired along top margin, closed repaired tear on B4, a few tiny repaired holes—marginal on X1 and I4 and just touching letters on 2Y4 and 2Z1, 3H3 with repaired tear from margin, a few gatherings with light toning or spotting). Contemporary vellum, endleaves watermarked with foolscap similar to Gravell online no. FOL 0314 [1679], spine lettered in manuscript (small erasure above spine lettering). Provenance: early manuscript correction on Z1v – pencil marginalia on B1r – acquired in 1988.
| Künstler: | Isaac Newton (1643 - 1727) |
|---|---|
| Herkunftsort: | England |
| Kategorie des Auktionshauses: | Gedruckte Bücher |
| Künstler: | Isaac Newton (1643 - 1727) |
|---|---|
| Herkunftsort: | England |
| Kategorie des Auktionshauses: | Gedruckte Bücher |
| Adresse der Versteigerung |
CHRISTIE'S 8 King Street, St. James's SW1Y 6QT London Vereinigtes Königreich | |
|---|---|---|
| Vorschau |
| |
| Telefon | +44 (0)20 7839 9060 | |
| Aufgeld | see on Website | |
| Nutzungsbedingungen | Nutzungsbedingungen |






![[NEWTON, Isaac (1642-1727)]](/assets/image/picture_4036009/5c8e6/3e601c7a9444e346ef4136ceaf96156f1720562400jpg__fix_162_205.jpeg)








