“Exceedingly Accurate, as Well as Skilfully Engraven in Copper”: The Role of Images in Early Modern Scientific Books

Books were an important conduit for scientific ideas in the early modern period. A significant feature of many of these books were illustrations depicting the specimens, instruments, and experiments discussed in the text. These images helped circulate knowledge between individual natural philosophers and newly formed intellectual networks forming in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Printed images were also sites of negotiation as book illustrations required the specialized skill of an artist or artisan to engrave, etch, or carve the block or plate. Thus, these images are fruitful sites to study the relationship between author and image-maker.

This paper will explore the role of images in early modern scientific books, focusing on texts published by the early Académie royale des sciences in Paris. Founded in 1666, the French Academy was one of the first scientific societies in Europe, receiving patronage from King Louis XIV. This generous funding was reflected in their earliest publications which were large, sumptuous, and heavily illustrated. Some of these images were celebrated for their artistic skill as well as scientific accuracy. This paper will examine how these images were negotiated between scientist and artist, as well as their role in disseminating knowledge created by the young Academy.