The “Physica Mosaica” of Johann Heinrich Alsted (1588–1638)
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21665992 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Jan Cízek (0000-0001-8935-1189, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2020 |
| Volume | 42 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 117-139 |
| Publication date | 2020-09-04 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Teorie vědy / Theory of Science (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1210-0250 • E-ISSN: 1804-6347 |
| Publisher | Institute of Philosophy of the Czech Academy of Sciences (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.46938/tv.2020.472 |
| OpenAlex | W3083483808 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 3 |
Some early modern scholars believed that Scripture provided more certain knowledge than all secular authorities – even Aristotle – or investigating nature as such. In this paper, I analyse one such attempt to establish the most reliable knowledge of nature: the so-called Mosaic physics proposed by the Reformed encyclopaedist Johann Heinrich Alsted. Although in his early works on Physica Mosaica Alsted declares that his primary aim is proving the harmony that exists between various traditions of natural philosophy, namely between the Mosaic and the Peripatetic approaches, and despite the fact that his biblical encyclopaedia of 1625 was intended to be based on a literal reading of the Bible, he never truly abandoned the Aristotelian framework of physics. What is more, in his mature encyclopaedia of 1630, he eventually openly preferred Aristotle to other natural-philosophical traditions. I argue, therefore, that Alsted’s bold vision of Mosaic physics remained unfulfilled and should be assessed as an unsuccessful project of early modern natural philosophy
Archaeology · Art · Art history · Encyclopedia · Epistemology · Linguistics · Literature · Mosaic · Natural law · Natural Philosophy · Classics · Historical and Literary Studies · Historical, Religious, and Philosophical Studies · History · Philosophy · Religious Studies and Spiritual Practices
| Unique citing works | 1 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1 |
| Citation span | 2026 - 2026 (1) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 1 |