Top of page

Book/Printed Material Theater of Instruments and Machines. Theatrum instrumentorum et machinarum

About this Item

Title

  • Theater of Instruments and Machines.

Other Title

  • Theatrum instrumentorum et machinarum

Summary

  • A new type of book appeared in Europe in the late 16th century, representing a genre of literature known as the "theater of machines." The first of the theaters was produced by Jacques Besson (circa 1540--73), a French Protestant, born in Grenoble, who worked primarily as a mathematics teacher until royal patronage came his way. In 1559, Besson published a book on extracting oils and waters from simple drugs. His second book, Le Cosmolabe, published in 1567, described an elaborate instrument that could be used for navigation, surveying, cartography, and astronomy. In 1569 King Charles IX appointed Besson "master of the King's engines." Before Besson, illustrations of machines had appeared, but they were mainly of current technology or provided limited descriptions of new inventions. Besson began work on a book of designs for a range of instruments and machines that he envisioned could be built. His book was published in 1571--72, with descriptions by Besson and 60 engravings made to Besson's specifications by Jacques Androuet du Cerceau. The plates depicted measuring and drawing instruments, many later used to produce the original plans for the machines, as well as lathes, stone cutters, sawmills, horse carriages, barrels, dredges, pile drivers, grist mills, hauling machines, cranes, elevators, pumps, salvage machines, nautical propulsion machines, and many others. Following the crackdown on Protestants that began in France in 1572, Besson emigrated to England, where he died in 1573. A new edition of his work appeared in 1578, with more detailed descriptions by François Béroalde de Verville and four replacement engravings by René Boyvin. Shown here is the 1578 edition.

Names

  • Androuet du Cerceau, Jacques, flourished 1549-1584, engraver.
  • Béroalde de Verville, François, 1556-1626, contributor.
  • Besson, Jacques, Dauphinois, author.
  • Boyvin, René, around 1525-1598, engraver.

Created / Published

  • Lyon : Barthélemy Vincent, 1578.

Headings

  • -  France
  • -  France--Île-de-France--Paris
  • -  1557 to 1578
  • -  Machinery
  • -  Mechanical engineering

Notes

  • -  Title devised, in English, by Library staff.
  • -  Original resource extent: 24 unnumbered pages, 60 leaves of engraved plates. Contemporary vellum cover, 32.5 x 20.5 centimeters.
  • -  Original resource at: Smithsonian Institution.
  • -  Content in Latin.
  • -  Description based on data extracted from World Digital Library, which may be extracted from partner institutions.

Medium

  • 1 online resource.

Digital Id

Library of Congress Control Number

  • 2021666747

Online Format

  • compressed data
  • pdf
  • image

Additional Metadata Formats

IIIF Presentation Manifest

Rights & Access

The Library of Congress is unaware of any copyright or other restrictions in the World Digital Library Collection. Absent any such restrictions, these materials are free to use and reuse. Researchers are encouraged to review the source information attached to each item. For information on contacting WDL partner organizations, see this archived list of partners

The Library asks that researchers approach the materials in this collection with respect for the culture and sensibilities of the people whose lives, ideas, and creativity are documented here.

Credit Line: [Original Source citation], World Digital Library

More about Copyright and other Restrictions

For additional information and contact information for many of the partner organizations, see this archived capture of the World Digital Library site from 2021.

For guidance about compiling full citations consult Citing Primary Sources.

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Androuet Du Cerceau, Jacques, Flourished , Engraver, François Béroalde De Verville, Jacques Besson, and René Boyvin. Theater of Instruments and Machines. Lyon: Barthélemy Vincent, 1578. Pdf. https://www.loc.gov/item/2021666747/.

APA citation style:

Androuet Du Cerceau, J., Béroalde De Verville, F., Besson, J. & Boyvin, R. (1578) Theater of Instruments and Machines. Lyon: Barthélemy Vincent. [Pdf] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/2021666747/.

MLA citation style:

Androuet Du Cerceau, Jacques, Flourished , Engraver, et al. Theater of Instruments and Machines. Lyon: Barthélemy Vincent, 1578. Pdf. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/2021666747/>.