A Reading Day

 

Today I was booked in to read from the Dee library at the Royal College of Physicians.  I did have opportunity to do this once before; I got one day in back in 2020 before all the libraries closed due to COVID and I had to head home far too early.  It was so good to be back and to be working with Katie again, who is the special collections librarian.  She not only helped me  by "fetching" the books I needed but also with her huge amount of knowledge in this area - and even with interacting with me about the writing I want to do.  I accessed again some of the books I had accessed before (the Alexander, the Cardano, and the Archimedes) but also others that my studies of Dee have led me to in the meantime (Copernicus/Rheticus, Frisius, Llull, Plotinus/Ficino, and Postel).  I'll post just a couple of imagines from my RCP reading to give an idea.

The above is from the Mathemalogium of Andreas Alexander (1503).  Dee was reading this when he was imprisoned by Queen Mary I ("Bloody" Mary).  The writing he did in the margins of this book is very neat, and I always imagine that is because he had time on his hands!  On this page he makes a correction to the printed text.  Here is a square with sides of length 4 (given in Roman Numerals as iiij) and a diagonal given as having length 32 (written xxxij), but rather than 32, it should be the square root of 32.  The symbol in front of xxxij is handwritten by Dee, an old form of the square root symbol.

The book above connects two of "my" mathematicians.  It was written by Cardano but owned by Dee, and used by Dee as a textbook of astrology (which was an expected area of learning for a scholar at that time - at least one working with math and astronomy - and often for physicians as well, since astrology tied into diagnoses).  Cardano and Dee eventually met (1552), but Dee most likely had this book prior to that and was using it to learn from during his time in the Low Countries.  You can see Dee's writing on the left-hand page (neater on some days than others).  I included this picture because it involves both Dee and Cardano, but my name is here too -- on the slip of paper sticking out of the top of the book.  Am I ever in august company!!

I walked from the RCP to the British Library - about a 20-minute walk.  Along the way I found this business area with some little restaurants, and I definitely needed a lunch break!  Tucked way in the back corner was a little Italian Café and also some rather fun seating.  I think this is "Regent's Place."

As I resumed my journey to the British Library, I saw what is in the following two pictures.  Can you tell what they are before scrolling further?

A quick peek, and then onward to the British Library.  I had spent more time at the RCP than planned because I found out the British Library was open until 8pm.  Yea!

Pencils only in the reading room.  Everything else goes in the locker.  (Cameras are OK for many items.)  I took a picture to make sure I'd remember which locker my stuff was in! 

I'd been particularly excited to access the Jacopo Silvestri book from Dee's library.  It is the second book on cryptography ever printed (1526) and was bought in Venice by Dee in 1563.  The shelf mark is 556.b.20. When I first opened the book I thought they'd given me the wrong thing.  It turns out there are two books bound together - despite having nothing to do with each other - the book I wanted was at the back.  The book at the front was a 1620 book on sign language, which was interesting too!

I also consulted a Cardano book here at the British Library - one that I had requested in 2020 and was booked in to see, but the library closed due to COVID before I got a chance to do so.

I love this book!  I ended up reading almost the entire thing.  I'm interested in it, of course, because it is written by Cardano, but it also has pretty "famous" connections.  It seems that Shakespeare must have been very familiar with it, as much of his "To Be Or Not To Be" soliloquy are almost word-for-word from this book.  I took so many pictures of it that I'm having a hard time finding exactly the ones I want to illustrate this, but notice the end of the second page here: "Seeing then men die with such ease, what can Death be better compared to than a Dream."  And in Hamlet's soliloquy we have, " 'tis a consummation devoutly to be wish'd.  To die, to sleep; to sleep, perchance to dream - "  I realize this is a pretty common sentiment, but there are many more connections here, closer connections.  Also, it is thought that just before that scene, when Polonius comes upon Hamlet in the library and asks Hamlet what he is reading, and Hamlet says, "Words, words, words" that the book Hamlet is holding in his hand is this book of Cardano.  Personally, I found the book quite compelling and helpful, as it says on the title page, "Of great use in these times," well, in great use in this time too, I think.

Precious treasures:

Fun fact - there's actually a little mystery here.  The date (bottom of spine) on the Silvestri book is 1616, but I know it to have been published in 1526.  Additionally, the inscription on the inside that is written in John Dee's hand indicates that he purchased it in 1563 in Venice.  Well, that is impossible if it was published in 1616 (which is 7 years after his death!).  When I was back at the RCP the next day, I mentioned it to Katie, and she thought about the dates and realized almost immediately that in Roman numerals there is only one symbol difference between 1526 and 1616, so an easier mistake in that system than in ours, using MDCXVI instead of the correct MDXXVI.  The only difference is an X vs. a C.

Short Post and Break Announcement

 

Today, Monday, was filled with archival reading, first at the Royal College of Physicians and then at the British Library.  I have no words to describe the awesomeness of the precious treasures I was handling today.  However, I realized this morning that I've been spending so much time filling my entire days with activity and my entire nights with recording activities (2 blogs, facebook, and a written journal - in order to preserve every memory in every way possible) that I wasn't really prepared for the readings I was undertaking today.  I also ended up so tired in the British Library that I couldn't physically keep my eyes open to read, so I am going to have to take a break from posting for a few days.  Once I get to Winchester and Oxford (later this week) things will slow down a lot.  I don't have nearly as much planned there.  Speaking of Oxford, I haven't taken time to research and request the items I wish to consult at the Bodleian, and that's really what I'm here for is research, so I really need to get my head on straight and make time for that.  I was doing so well - blogging the "day of" and then one day late, and now it's May 9, but the events I last blogged about happened on May 6.  It's definitely time to get my time and activity level under control.  

I think I can't end without posting a few more pictures, but I also kind of want to hold off until I can discuss them fully - but because I can't hold back, here are a small handful:

Above is a book written by "my" mathematician Girolamo Cardano and owned and annotated by "my" mathematician John Dee.  My name is on the reader's card sticking out of the top.  You cannot imagine my joy connecting Dee and Cardano (who did meet in 1552) and also my own name by doing this reading.  (The book is Cardano's Libelli quinque and is in the collection of the Royal College of Physicians.)

Above is the title page of one of my favorite books of all time, the Mathemalogium of Andreas Alexander (1503).  This is also in the RCP collection.  I've written about it before in this blog (2 years ago) but found new things to write about, which will be coming up!

Today is the first time I consulted the book above, Girolamo Cardano's Three Books of Consolation.  Even though I was so tired I wanted to put my head down right there and take a nap, I read almost every word of this book.  It's AMAZING!  It is now tied for favorite with the book above.  More about it when I do a full post about today. (This is in the British Library, and the shelf-mark is 8405.a.9)

Mortlake, Richmond, & Hyde Park

 

Today I am starting with the end of my day and working forward.  The picture above is of the "Long Water" from the Italian Gardens in Hyde Park.  My focus today was mathematician John Dee, so I started out by taking a train from Waterloo Station and stopping off at Mortlake (his home) and Richmond (the home of Queen Elizabeth I, whom he advised).  I'll end the post with the "mathy stuff" so that those who are so inclined may skip that part easily.  Obviously, everyone wants to get the above photo, and the ladies below were so lovely that I snapped a photo of them as well when I was waiting to get my clear shot of the "Long Water."

I am actually here, despite not showing up in many photos.  Here I am among the spring blooms of Hyde Park (but then again, I suppose this could be anywhere, but I am really here!).  This picture is just west of the Italian Gardens, and it seems that spring has sprung!

I did some evening reading after dinner in the Italian Gardens of Hyde Park.  In light of the recent pandemic and having had to flee London two years ago and all the "vax battles" that have been going on in the US, it seems somehow ironic that I am sitting in the shadow of a statue to Edward Jenner, who pioneered the idea of vaccination. 

The earlier part of the day was filled with travel.

I'm really getting to know the train stations - a trip home to Paddington (above) after a trip out from Waterloo (below).

I began in Mortlake, former home of John Dee, which is what I will end this post with.  After Mortlake was a visit to Richmond where Queen Elizabeth I had a palace (as did her father and his father before him).  Actually, some sort of royal residence has stood here since Edward I all the way back in 1125 (then Cromwell came in with his destructive forces, but that's another post for someone else's blog).  Below is nearly all that remains of the Tudor Palace: one gate house:

Richmond Green, near the gate, is where jousting tournaments were held in medieval times.

My reason for visiting both Richmond and Mortlake is to look further into the life of John Dee, who was Elizabeth's tutor and advisor and astrologer.  Five times that we know of, Queen Elizabeth actually visited Dee at his home, something I find quite surprising.  I can't imagine the queen visited too many of her subjects at their homes -- some of the nobles in their vast and magnificent manor houses, yes, but a commoner like Dee?  Not only did she stop by Dee's place, but it was typically a surprise when she showed up.  The first of these visits was on March 16, 1575, and she arrived only to find that Dee's wife had died and was to be buried that day!  He invited her in, but she declined and spoke with him by the church wall.  She never did go inside his modest home, but she did stop by to speak with him at least four more times.  They each had a "home" bordering the Thames -- well, she had multiple "homes" bordering on the Thames, but this one was particularly close to Mortlake -- and she could get to his place on her royal barge; she also arrived on horseback at least one of these times.

The picture above is the Thames as it passes where Richmond Palace once stood, and below is the Thames as it borders on the former property of John Dee.

Near this spot in the river is the following plaque:

On part of what used to be his property is a row of flats called the John Dee House.  This is across the street from the river, and all of this property belonged to Dee.  He had a humble home that he added wings onto in order to hold his ever-growing library, which became the largest library in Britain.

Below is pictured the wall between Dee's property and the Church of St. Mary the Virgin where Dee is buried.  The queen stood near this wall to talk with him the first time she visited, and maybe others as well.  It's hard to tell how much of this wall goes back to Dee's time and what has been changed over the years -- obviously lots of patching and repairs, perhaps some alterations as well?

Lots of pictures of the wall follow.  Feel free to scroll past quickly to get to pictures of the church and church yard.  I'm just taking a really close look for my own sake.

I was unable to get inside the church, but I spent a lot of time in the atmospheric church yard.  Dee is buried inside, though it is not known exactly where.  The church is quite an eclectic combination of styles, so here too it's a bit hard to know what goes back to Dee's time.  The red brick part of the tower below seems to me to be Tudor.

I found this arch so evocative that I decided to take a short (less than a minute) video of what it's like to walk through it.  I wondered if I should have done so, knowing what happened to Sirius Black in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix!

I took some time to sit on this lovely bench and do some journaling.

Well, I guess this didn't get all that "mathy," did it?  I'm going to close with a few pretty random photos just because.  The first is something that caught my attention just to the side of the church entrance.  It looks like someone made a little diorama in honor of the recent Easter celebration.  Anyone know what meaning a shell might have here?

I loved the picture below so much and also loved the proliferation of blue flowers throughout the church yard that I decided to try a filter on this one.  I really like the result, which is the final photograph in this post.

Oh - wait, wait wait!  For those of you reading this with a desire to visit Mortlake or who are studying Dee and want to get an idea of how all of the above fits together, I have a LONG (5 min.) video where I walk between the three locations - Dee House, St. Mary's Church, and the riverfront area.  It's rough and long, but if context is what you're after, here it is!