Abstract
This lecture is about the enigma of the manuscript known as “The Twenty-One Books of Devices and Machines of Juanelo” (“Los veintiún libros de los ingenios y máquinas de Juanelo”) which is kept in The National Library of Madrid (Biblioteca Nacional de Madrid 1983). This book has prompted numerous investigations and some discussions. As years go by we have been able to carry out an in-depth study and correct the mistakes that a hasty discussion often causes.
Our aim is to reveal the results of our research on the manuscript mentioned-above. These results are related to both the content of the book, especially the parts regarding the water technique – the subject of this conference – and the ups and downs it has gone through. In this research, we explain the reasons and present the documentary evidences which allow us to keep maintaining, more convinced than ever, that the author of the book is Pedro Juan de Lastanosa from Aragon (Spain).
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Bails, B.: Elementos de matemáticas, t. IX, P. II, “Arquitectura Hidráulica” (“Hydraulic Architecture”), Madrid (1790), pp. 145–149
Biblioteca Nacional de Madrid (BNM) (National Library of Madrid), Manuscritos, 3372–3376. Edición de J. A. García-Diego, Madrid, 1983. Edición facsímil con comentarios del mismo autor (Facsimile Edition with commentaries by the same author), Fundación Juanelo Turriano, Madrid 1997. Existe una versión inglesa por Alex Kéller (There is an English version by Alex Keller)
Biblioteca Nacional de Madrid, Ms. 2.659. (National Library of Madrid)
Bustamante, A., Marías, F.: “La révolution classique: de Vitruve à l’Escorial”, Révue de l’Art, CNRS (1985), pp. 29–40
Concretamente en el libro de Teodoro de Ardemans, Fluencias de la tierra y cursosubterráneo de las aguas, Madrid (1724), se copian casi literalmente párrafos enteros y dibujos que estaban en “Los veintiún libros…”. Para Ardemans, el autor del manuscrito era el digno de ser comparado a Vitruvio y a Alberti. (Specifically in the Teodoro de Ardemans’ book, The earth’s sources and underground water course, Madrid (1742), there are almost literally copied whole paragraphs and draws from “The twenty-one books…” According to Ardemans, the manuscript’s writer was a person worthy of comparison with Vitruvio and Alberti)
Jerónimo Girava y Pedro Juan de Lastanosa, Los dos libros de Geometría Práctica…, (The two books of Practical Geometry…) Biblioteca Nacional de Madrid (National Library of Madrid), Manuscrito 9.437. N. García Tapia, Mª.I. Vicente Maroto, “Los dos Libros de Geometría Práctica de Fineo traducidos por Girava y ordenados por Lastanosa” (“The two books of Practical Geometry of Fineo translated by Girava and ordered by Lastanosa”), Asclepio, XLIII, 1, (1991), pp. 249–267
Frago Gracia, J.A., García-Diego, J.A.: Un autor aragonés para “Los veintiún libros y de lasmáquinas” (An Aragonese author for “The twenty-one books of devices”) Zaragoza (1988)
García Tapia, N.: Ingeniería y Arquitectura en el Renacimiento Español (Engineering and Architecture in the Spanish Reinassance), Valladolid (1990) y De dios del fuego a la máquina de vapor (and From the god of fire until the steam engine). La introducción de la técnica en Hispanoamérica (The introduction to the Hispanic Technique), Valladolid (1992)
García Tapia, N.: Fuentes literarias de la antigüedad clásica en” “Los veintiún libros de losingenios…” (“Literary sources of the classical period in “The twenty-one books of devices…”) Actas del X Congreso del CEHA, Madrid (1994), pp. 459–467
García-Diego, J.A., García Tapia, N.: Vida y técnica en el Renacimiento (Life and Technique in the Reinassance). El manuscrito de Francisco Lobato, vecino de Medina del Campo. Valladolid (1987)
Recogida en varios artículos y comentarios de (cited in several articles and commentaries by) García-Diego, Díaz Marta, Fernández Ordóñez, García Tapia y otros, en la Revista de Obras Públicas entre los años 1988 y 1989 (in the Public Works Magazine between 1988 and 1989)
Los avatares de la biblioteca de Pedro Juan de Lastanosa se encuentran recogidos en varios documentos y testamentos del Archivo Histórico de Madrid, que hemos recogido en el libro citado en la nota 1. (The avatars of Pedro Juan de Lastanosa’s Library are collected in several documents and testaments in the Historical File of Madrid, in the book cited in note 1)
Mª. Isabel Vicente Maroto y Mariano Esteban Piñeiro, Aspectos de la Ciencia Aplicada en la España del Siglo de Oro (Applied Science Aspects in the Spanish Golden Century) Salamanca, 1991
Respecto de la labor de los científicos de la corte de Felipe II, consúltese el libro de Mª. I. Vicente Maroto y M. Esteban ya citado (Dealing with the scientists’ work of Philip II Court, see the book by Mª. I. Vecente Maroto y M. Esteban above named)
Sobre la biografía de Pedro Juan de Lastanosa véase el libro citado en nota 1. (Related to Pedro Juan de Lastanosa’s biography see the book in note 1)
Sobre los privilegios y patentes por invención, véase N. García Tapia, Patentes de invención españolas en el Siglo de Oro (Patents of Spanish inventions in the Golden Century), Madrid (1990)
Un libro de próxima aparición, titulado Historia de la Ciencia y de la Técnica en la Corona de Castilla, que hemos realizado entre varios autores especialistas de la historia de la ciencia y de la técnica española, cambiará sin duda esta concepción (An upcoming book titled History of Science and Technique in the Kingdom of Castilla). A work made by some writers, specialists in the Spanish history of the science and technique. A book that will change this meaning
Véase, por ejemplo, el libro de F. Checa Cremades, Felipe II. Mecenas de las Artes (Philip II. Patron of the Arts) Madrid (1993)
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2011 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Tapia, N.G. (2011). Pedro Juan De Lastanosa and “The Twenty-One Books of Devices and Machines of Juanelo”. In: de la Portilla, J., Ceccarelli, M. (eds) History of Machines for Heritage and Engineering Development. History of Mechanism and Machine Science, vol 14. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-1251-5_3
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-1251-5_3
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-94-007-1250-8
Online ISBN: 978-94-007-1251-5
eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)