GRANDAMI, Jacques.

Le Parallele des Deux Cometes qui ont paru les Années 1664. & 1665.

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Two folding engraved plates (a little cropped at outer margins). 11, [2] pp. Small 4to, attractive antique calf. Paris: S. Cramoisy & S. Marbre-Cramoisy, 1665. First edition and extremely rare. The comets of 1664 and 1665, widely observed throughout Europe and China, caused much debate within astronomical, religious, and academic circles regarding their paths and natures. On 10 January 1665 “a conference concerning comets was held at the Jesuit Collège de Clermont in Paris in the presence of the duc and prince de Conti and numerous prelates and courtiers.”–Thorndike, VIII, pp. 324-25. Amongst those invited to speak was Grandami (1588-1672), French Jesuit physicist and astronomer, who had taught at various Jesuit colleges in France. Grandami stated that comets were formed from condensed celestial matter, translucent enough to allow the sun’s rays to pass through, visible on the far side as the comet’s tail. They derived their motion from nearby stars, which could also destroy them. He reiterated the conclusions he had drawn from his observations of the comet of 1618. Later in 1665, Grandami published the present book, which described the 1664 comet as well as the recently observed comet of 1665. As the two comets were very similar in appearance, the scientific community sought proof that the two celestial bodies were in fact different. Grandami felt that the second was slightly “shinier,” with a brighter, longer tail, but lacked accurate enough measurement of the parallax to prove his point definitively. Grandami corresponded with a network of colleagues who made similar observations in Rome, Lyon, La Flêche, Liège, etc. The two plates depict each comets’ appearance and path through the sky. Fine copy. ❧ Lalande, p. 262.

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• 订书号：: HillBibl-1916

• 书商: Jonathan A. Hill, Bookseller, Inc. (USA)