Giambattista Riccioli, Almagestum novum (Bologna, 1651), Part 1
In a massive textbook of astronomy, Riccioli adopted Hevelius’ map of the lunar surface, yet he proposed different topographical names. Riccioli adopted an inclusive approach to lunar nomenclature, naming lunar features after astronomers of multiple nationalities and religious affiliations.
For example, Riccioli, a Jesuit, named a crater after Kepler, who was Lutheran rather than Catholic. Galileo lies to the left of Kepler; Hevelius appears slightly below Galileo. Copernicus is in the upper right. In the center, below, a crater is named for Tycho. Above Tycho is Gauricus, named after Luca Guarico, the Pope’s own astronomer in the generation of Copernicus. Riccioli placed himself far out on the left margin.
Riccioli’s system of naming succeeded because he included astronomers from across Europe and the Middle East, Protestants and Muslims as well as Catholics. Many of Riccioli’s names remain in use today. In 1969, Apollo 11 landed on the Moon, establishing “Tranquility Base” in the Sea of Tranquility, named Mare Tranquilitatis by Riccioli.
Riccioli’s “New Astronomy” was widely used, even in France and England. The OU copy is bound in two volumes; Part 2 was on display in Bizzell Memorial Library. The two parts comprise “volume 1.” A third volume, which would have contained a promised “Vol. 2,” was never printed.
Galileo's World Exhibition Location
Source: History of Science Collections
Gallery: The Moon and the Telescope
Section: The Moon and the Telescope
Section Number: 1
Object Number: 5
Subject Area(s): Astronomy, Law and Political Science, Religious Studies, History of the Book
Time Period: 17th Century
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