The leading contemporary account of mainstream Newtonianism
SKU: 9773
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The leading contemporary account of mainstream Newtonianism
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An Account of Sir Isaac Newton's Philosophical Discoveries. In Four Books... Published from the Author's Manuscript Papers... The Second Edition.
Author Colin MacLaurin fled Edinburgh when it surrendered to Jacobite forces during the 1745 rebellion. He had a difficult journey and never fully recovered his health, although he was dictating the final chapter of the present work, his Account of Sir Isaac Newton's Philosophical Discoveries, until hours before his death: “Though a number of other general expositions of Newton's thought were published during the eighteenth century, MacLaurin's Account has long been recognized as the leading authoritative statement of mainstream Newtonianism.” Read more
Per the ODNB, “Colin MacLaurin was a younger contemporary, and to some extent a protégé of Isaac Newton... he was admitted to membership in the Royal Society (1719), and often visited Newton... his first major book, the Geometria organica... was published under Newton's imprimatur in 1720”.
Condition & Materials
8vo. pp. [x], xxvi, 412 + 6 engraved folding plates, show-through from leather turn-ins affecting first and final leaves of text. Contemporary sprinkled gilt-ruled calf, somewhat worn, rebacked preserving original spine, recent morocco lettering piece. Errata neatly corrected in an early hand. Engraved armorial bookplate of Robert Parker (1754-1837), Shelley’s uncle and the author of ‘Letters on Atheism’.
References
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
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