Athanasius Kircher

Athanasius Kircher (in French: Athanase Kircher ) (May 2nd 1601, Geisa, in Thuringe, close to Fulda, Germany, - November 27th 1680, Rome, Italy) is a German Jésuite, Graphologue, Orientaliste, encyclopedic spirit and one of the most important scientists of the time Baroque.

Biography

Family

His/her father, Johannes Kircher of Mainz, had studied the Philosophie and the Théologie, and, instead of becoming priest, had become the adviser of the Balthasar prince-abbot of Fulda. This last will be expelled thereafter and Johannes Kircher will lose its political offices and the social status which were attached there. It there will never return and will be devoted to teaching and its family life. Impoverished, it did not take care about it less to give a good instruction to its six sons among which Athanasius was youngest.

Studies, formation and the first teaching

Between 1614 and 1618, Kircher learns the old Greek and the Hebrew with the college Jesuit from Fulda. It enters the order Jésuite to Paderborn on October 2nd 1618. After the spiritual formation (Noviciate) and the deepening of the traditional languages (humanities) with the study of sciences with Paderborn (1618 to 1622) it continues its training in philosophy with Münster and Cologne, studies curiosities of the physical world with Heiligenstadt and, of 1625 to 1628, studies theology in Mainz where it is ordered priest (1628). He then teaches the ethical and mathematics at the university of Wurzbourg where he also initiates himself with the scientific research and the Eastern languages. Its first publication (on the Magnetism) date of this time: Ars magnesia (1631).

Professor in Rome

But, fleeing the War Thirty Year old, it takes refuge in Avignon where it builds a Observatoire and publishes a test on the Gnomonique. It is invited to Vienna but the intervention of Nicolas-Claude Fabri de Peiresc near the cardinal Francesco Barberini makes that it is named professor of Physique, Mathématiques and Eastern Langues with the Collège Romain in Rome (1635). It seems that the pope Urbain VIII itself intervened. There remained attached to the university until the end of its life… what did not prevent it from travelling everywhere where its scientific investigations led: Aix, Vienna, Coblentz, Münster, Malta, etc In fact, as of 1646 one freed it from his task of teacher so that it can be devoted entirely to research and the writing. The few 39 pounds which he wrote touch mathematics, the Astronomie, the music, acoustics, the Archéologie, the Chimie, the Optique, the Médecine, without speaking about the Eastern languages, the Volcanologie “curious” and other subjects even if less scientists: the Cabal, the Occultism… (It is same city like a major figure in the history of Rosicrucianisme…). These books swarm with intuitions and various assumptions of which it let with its successors the task confirm them or cancel. Often compared with Leonardo da Vinci, this genius Encyclopédique was called the “Master of the hundred Knowledge”.

Discovered and achievements

Light and optics

In 1646, Kircher publishes a treaty on the light in dialectical relationship to the darkness Ars magna Lucis and Umbrae and manufactures a Microscope which enabled him to make relevant observations on the Sang. One also gives him the paternity of the Magic lantern, ancestor of the contemporary Cinéma.

Medicine

Not very inclined with a distant academism, Kircher is interested in medicine when a epidemic of Peste devastation Naples and Rome (1656). It however adopts a resolutely modern approach in the study of the diseases and with its Microscope examines the Sang victims of the epidemic. In its Scrutinium Pestis published in 1658, it notes the presence of “small towards” or “animalicules” in blood and concludes from it that the plague is caused by micro-organisms. Its conclusion is correct even if it is not interdict to think only what it saw are white or red globules and not the agent of the plague, Yersinia pestis. He also proposes prophylactic measurements to prevent the propagation of the disease like the insulation in Forty the patients, the Incinération their clothing and the wearing of facial mask to avoid inhaling the Germe S.

Acoustics, music and harmony

Kircher left us a Mégaphone of its invention. He also proposed a system intended to generate musical partitions, which makes of him the father of the algorithmic music generative. Always in the musical register, he is the author of proposals of automated musical instruments (in particular of the hydraulically actuated Orgues).

Linguistics and hiéroglyphes

Undoubtedly largest Polyglot of its time, Kircher was interested at the origin of the languages, studied the language copte (its treaty of coptology: Prodromus Coptus sive Aegyptiacus , 1636) and the sight of the Obélisque S in Rome (1628) turned it towards the Egyptology. It was also declared father of Egyptology

Kircher estimated that the hieroglyphic signs were symbols. Its deductions could thus only be erroneous. But, even false, some are surprising. i.e. six unhappy signs , it reads the benefits of divine Osiris must be gotten by the means of the crowned ceremonies and the chain of the geniuses, so that the benefits of the Nile are obtained ; astonishing translation whereas the name of the Pharaon means quite simply the Re heart is delighted . After the examination of the work sent by Kircher, Peiresc realizes of the many errors and doubtful interpretations but maintains (or made pretense maintain) its confidence with the Jesuit.

Did he also know Chinese? Not, but that did not prevent it from publishing a China monumentis illustrata (Amsterdam, 1667), especially revealing its great capacity to document itself and its encyclopedic spirit.

In other fields…

He observed in Sicily an eruption of the Etna (1630) - for a better observation he even reduced himself in the cone from the Volcan - and travelled to Malta (1636) to study there the Courants sailors, volcanos and Earthquakes. He drew some the interesting conclusions and wrote the first treaty of Géologie: Mundus subterraneus (Amsterdam, 1665).

In addition to the Magic lantern and the Microscope it invented a calculating machine and the Pantographe (to facilitate the study of the Géométrie). These drawings are in Pantometrum Kircherianum (Wurzbourg, 1669).

He also studied the Bible with his manner, calculating dimensions of the Arche of Noah ( Arca Noah , Amsterdam, 1675) of the Tower of Babel ( Turris Babel , Amsterdam, 1679) and of the Temple of Solomon… He was mislaid in the biblical Numérologie: Arithmologia, sive of abditis numerorum mysteriis , Roma, 1665).

In addition, contrary to other great men of science of his time (Isaac Newton, Robert Boyle) it rejected the Alchimie completely. It created with the Collège Romain a museum of sciences and Ethnographie (Kircherien Museum), the first of the kind, which unfortunately disappeared when the Society of Jesus was removed (in 1773).

Works

1631 Ars Magnesia
1635 Primitiae gnomoniciae catroptricae
1636 Prodromus coptus sive aegyptiacus
1637 Speculated Melitensis encyclica, hoc is syntagma novum instrumentorum physico mathematicorum
1641 Magnes sive of arte magnetica
1643 Lingua aegyptiaca restituta
1645-1646 Ars Magna Lucis and umbrae in mundo
1650 Obeliscus Pamphilius
1650 Musurgia universalis, sive ars magna consoni and dissoni
1652-1655 Oedipus Aegyptiacus
1654 Magnes sive
1656 Itinerarium extaticum S. opificium coeleste
1657 Iter extaticum secundum, mundi subterranei prodromus
1658 Scrutinium Physico-Medicum Contagiosae Shine, quae dicitur Pestis
1660 Pantometrum Kircherianum… explicatum has G. Schotto
1661 Diatribe of prodigiosis crucibus
1663 Polygraphia, seu artificium linguarium quo cum bus mundi populis poterit quis respondere
1664-1678 Mundus subterraneus, quo universae denic naturae divitiae
1665 Historia Eustachio-Mariana
1665 Arithmologia
1666 Obelisci Aegyptiaci… interpretatio hieroglyphica
1667 China Monumentis, qua sacris qua profanis
1667 Magneticum naturae regnum sive disceptatio physiologica
1668 Organum mathematicum
1669 Principis Cristiani archetypon politicum
1669 Latium
1669 Ars magna sciendi sive combinatorica
1673 Phonurgia nova, sive conjugium mechanico-physicum artis & natvrae paranympha phonosophia concinnatum
1675 Arca Noah
1676 Sphinx mystagoga
1676 Obelisci Aegyptiaci
1679 Musaeum Collegii Romani Societatis Jesu
1679 Turris Babel, Sive Archontologia Qua Firstly Priscorum post diluvium hominum vita, mores rerumque gestarum magnitudo, Secondly civitatumque Turris fabrica exstructio, confusio linguarum, & India gentium transmigrationis, cum principalium India enatorum idiomatum historia, multiplici eruditione describuntur & explicantur . Amsterdam, Jansson-Waesberge 1679.
1679 Tariffed Kircheriana sive mensa Pathagorica expansa
1680 Physiologia Kicheriana experimentalis

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