Historian of Science

Tag: Aphorisms

Fun with Astrological Abbreviations

Post author By Darin
Post date January 5, 2021

Copies of Ὁ Καρπός, a Greek collection of astrological aphorisms that was for centuries attributed to Ptolemy, often contain a variety of common and sometimes not so common abbreviations and symbols for astrological terms. Aphorism 97 in this particular manuscript (BnF gr. 2509) includes three typical abbreviations. Ὁ κύριοσ τῆσ πανσελήνου ἢ τῆσ συνόδου, ὅτε […]

Research

Aphorism 75 and the Challenges for a Critical Edition

Post author By Darin
Post date December 3, 2020

Critical editions are incredibly handy. They transform historical artifacts into an easily read, generic version of some text. They smooth out differences between versions, they correct grammar, and they normalize orthography. The labors of intrepid and tireless editors save us untold time and energy.[1] But those same labors, those efforts to efface differences and to […]