Raddologia - photo 1
Raddologia - photo 2
Raddologia - photo 3
Raddologia - photo 4

Raddologia

Lot 62
27.01.2023 10:00UTC +00:00
Classic
Sold
$ 4 410
AuctioneerCHRISTIE'S
Event locationUnited Kingdom, London
Buyer Premiumsee on Website%
Archive
The auction is completed. No bids can be placed anymore.
Archive
ID 887835
Lot 62 | Raddologia
Estimate value
$ 2 400 – 3 000
NAPIER, John (1550-1617). Raddologia, overo arimmetica virgolare in due libri divisa. Verona, Angel Tamo, 1623.

First Italian edition of Napier’s Rabdologiae, one of the earliest books on the use of mechanical devices in mathematical calculation, in contemporary boards. The Scottish mathematician Napier, also known as "The Marvellous Merchiston," was the inventor of logarithms and also devised a number of devices for simplifying the multiplication and division of large numbers. The most famous of these are Napier’s bones, "which in essence constitute a mechanical multiplication table [and] had a considerable vogue for many years after his death. Each rod is engraved with a table of multiples of a particular digit, the tens and units being separated by an oblique stroke ... Book II [of the Rabdologiae] is a practical treatment of mensuration formulas. Book III, the method of the promptuary, deals with a more complicated system of multiplication by engraved rods and strips, which has been called the first attempt at the invention of a calculating machine. The concluding section deals with a mechanical method of multiplication that was based on an 'areal abacus' consisting of a checkerboard with counters, in which numbers were expressed in the binary scale" (DSB). This translation includes a commmentary by Locatello and new illustrations. Riccardi I.2 44 (under Locatello). See Dibner 107 and Norman 1574 for the first edition.

Octavo (155 x 108mm). 7 woodcut tables and diagrams inserted, 6 of which folding; illustrations and diagrams in text, printer's device on final leaf, ornaments and initials (minor repair on dedication leaf, a few waterstains, a few small holes in title). Contemporary boards with paper spine label, faded ink title on upper board (worn, spine partially perished). Custom box. Provenance: Jesuit College of Parma (inscription on title) – two eighteenth-century owners’ inscriptions on front free endpaper – Charles W. Turner (donated in 1968 to:) – University of Keele Lbrary (Turner Collection bookplate; collection deaccessed via the trade in 1998).
Address of auction CHRISTIE'S
8 King Street, St. James's
SW1Y 6QT London
United Kingdom
Preview
13.01.2023 – 27.01.2023
Phone +44 (0)20 7839 9060
Email
4FQ.AYGKAGLUQ@FO3G@
Buyer Premium see on Website
Conditions of purchaseConditions of purchase

Frequently asked questions

First of all, you should register to be able to purchase at auction. After confirming your email address, enter your personal information in your user profile, such as your first name, last name, and mail address. Choose a lot from the upcoming auction and the maximum amount you want to place on it. After confirmation of your choice, we will send your application by e-mail to the appropriate auction house. If the auction house accepts a request, it will participate in the auction. You can view the current status of a bid at any time in your personal account in the "Bids" section.
Auctions are performed by auction houses and each of the auction houses describes their terms of auction. You can see the texts in the section "Auction information".
The results of the auction are published within a few days after the end of the auction. In the top menu of the site, find the tab "Auctions". Click on it and you will be on the auction catalog page, where you can easily find the category "Results". After opening it, select the desired auction from the list, enter and view the current status of the interested lot.
The information about the auction winners is confidential. The auction winner will receive a direct notification from the auction house responsible with instructions for further action: an invoice for payment and the manner in which the goods will be received.
Each of the auction houses has its own payment policy for the won lots. All auction houses accept bank transfers, most of them accept credit card payments. In the near future you will find detailed information for each case in the section "Auction information" on the page of the auction catalog and the lot.
Shipment of the won lot depends on its size. Small items can be delivered by post. Larger lots are sent by courier. Employees of the auction houses will offer you a wide range to choose from.
No. The archive serves as a reference for the study of auction prices, photographs and descriptions of works of art.
?>