Bernardino Baldis - In mechanica Aristotelis problemata exercitationes

Bernardino Baldi was born on June 6, 1553 in Urbino. He died in the same city on October 10, 1617. His book In mechanica Aristotelis problemata exercitationes was published posthumously in 1621. The Exercitationes include a discussion and commentaries on the Mechanical Problems, a text which in the sixteenth century was almost unanimously attributed to Aristotle. It represents a turning point in the development of Renaissance mechanics and distinguishes itself from the many other contemporary treatments of the pseudo-Aristotelian Mechanical Problems by taking a critical position. Archimedean principles are systematically applied to the physical problems raised in the pseudo-Aristotelian text. Baldi makes use of Guidobaldo del Monte's Mechanicorum liber and introduces lengthy digressions which gave rise to relevant scientific debate during the seventeenth century and considerably widened the boundaries of mechanics. --- 'Sources' of the Max Planck Research Library for the History and Development of Knowledge is a series presenting historical documents in a new format which combines the advantages of traditional printed books with those of the digital medium. In each volume a source text relevant for the history of knowledge is reproduced, typically in facsimile, together with an introduction and commentaries reflecting original scholarly work. The volumes are available both as print-on-demand books and as open-access publications on the Internet. The material is freely accessible online at www.edition-open-access.de, supplemented by additional information and interactive features. The original works reproduced in this series are typically rare books or manuscripts that are not readily accessible in libraries.