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Reviel Netz
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The Archimedes Codex: How a Medieval Prayer Book Is Revealing the True Genius of Antiquity's Greatest Scientist Hardcover – October 23, 2007

by Reviel Netz (Author), William Noel (Author)
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 163 ratings
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At a Christie's auction in October 1998, a battered medieval manuscript sold for two million dollars to an anonymous bidder, who then turned it over to the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore for further study. The manuscript was a palimpsest-a book made from an earlier codex whose script had been scraped off and the pages used again. Behind the script of the thirteenth-century monk's prayer book, the palimpsest revealed the faint writing of a much older, tenth-century manuscript. Part archaeological detective story, part science, and part history, The Archimedes Codex tells the extraordinary story of this lost manuscript, from its tenth-century creation in Constantinople to the auction block at Christie's, and how a team of scholars used the latest imaging technology to reveal and decipher the original text. What they found was the earliest surviving manuscript by Archimedes (287 b.c.-212 b.c.), the greatest mathematician of antiquity-a manuscript that revealed, for the first time, the full range of his mathematical genius, which was two thousand years ahead of modern science.
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  1. Print length
    352 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Da Capo Press
  4. Publication date
    October 23, 2007
  5. Dimensions
    6 x 1 x 9.25 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    030681580X
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0306815805
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In 1998, the auction house Christie's sold a medieval prayer book for more than $2 million. The price owed to a startling discovery: the prayers had been written over the earliest surviving manuscript of Archimedes (287–212 B.C.), the ancient world's greatest mathematician. In a delightful and fast-paced archeological and scientific detective story, Netz, a Stanford classicist, and Noel, director of the Archimedes Palimpsest Project, make palpable the excitement this discovery evoked. After the auction, they were given access to study the palimpsest; after frustrating days of trying to read the writings beneath the prayer manuscript, Netz, Noel and a team of scientists and conservators turned to a variety of imaging techniques to reconstruct the hidden Archimedes manuscript, which turned out to be heretofore undiscovered works, Balancing Planes, On Floating Bodies, The Method of Mechanical Theorems and the Stomachion, in which Archimedes wrote about topics ranging from gravity to infinity. The manuscript also revealed some lost speeches by Hyperides, one of the 10 canonical orators of antiquity. Netz and Noel's book chronicles the often difficult and demanding work surrounding the preservation of antiquities as they uncover one of the most exciting documents of ancient history. 16 pages of color photos. (Sept.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

Physics Today
“[Reviel Netz is] one of the most creative historians of mathematics of our time…[Will Noel] narrates with some verve his own story in learning about the palimpsest…Much of The Archimedes Codex is delightful. The story of the palimpsest is exciting, and few can explain difficult issues in Greek mathematics with the simplicity and elegance that Netz achieves…A fun read.”

Mathematics and Computer Education
“[A] crystal clear and captivating narrative. It is a book that is difficult to put down…An absolutely wonderful book…It will inspire future geometers, physicists, computer scientists, curators, and classicists.”

Science Books & Films, 8/08
“The fascinating story of how the secrets of this work have been unlocked.”

Mathematics Teacher, 11/08
“Accessible to a general audience…A valuable resource for instructors teaching a history of mathematics course.”

Toronto Globe and Mail, 1/31/09
“[An] archeological detective story…Fascinating.”

Blogcritics.org, 2/10/09
“A very interesting book, quite entertaining, sometimes funny, always engaging…A great treat for mystery lovers, classicists, mathematicians, and history buffs.”

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Da Capo Press; First Edition (October 23, 2007)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 352 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 030681580X
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0306815805
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.3 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 1 x 9.25 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 163 ratings

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Reviel Netz

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Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
163 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the book fascinating and informative. They describe it as an engrossing account of one of science's great episodes, the discovery of infinity. The writing quality is described as excellent and enjoyable. Readers appreciate the clear explanations of mathematics and visual aids that make the material understandable.

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31 customers mention "Interest"31 positive0 negative

Customers find the book fascinating and enthralling. It recounts one of the great episodes in the history of science, the discovery of infinity. The book provides the scholarly details and project managerial overview. Readers appreciate the surprises and additional historical discoveries, including the true story of a mediaeval manuscript. Overall, it's an educational read with many surprises.

"...funded by an anonymous and generous benefactor, uncover important intellectual history - a select group of proofs by antiquity's greatest..." Read more

"...One gives the scholarly nuts and bolts, the other the project managerial overview and history...." Read more

"The authors reveal the improbable but true story of a mediaeval manuscript which conceals a previously undiscovered work by Archimedes...." Read more

"...What is also, a plus, are the many surprises of additional historical discoveries regarding other people in history...." Read more

22 customers mention "Writing quality"22 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the book's writing quality. They find the history behind the extraordinary manuscript fascinating and engaging. The chapters are well-written, but some readers felt they were cut down from a full explanation. Overall, customers consider it an excellent read and worth their time.

"...This story of the Archimedes Codex is extraordinarily interesting - the conditions under which it sold and its history alone provide enough content..." Read more

"...The detective story aspect of the palimpsest's history was engaging, and I enjoyed being able to look over the shoulders of the researchers as they..." Read more

"Mathematics, Calculus, & Infinity is enthralling. This is especially true; when viewed from an historical perspective...." Read more

"...A truly fascinating read about a document that changes human history and our understanding of the origins of various disciplines of mathematics and..." Read more

13 customers mention "Comprehension"10 positive3 negative

Customers find the book easy to understand. They appreciate the clear writing and explanation of the mathematical concepts. The book explains the process of recovering the text in readable form. Readers are interested in science, math, and ancient history.

"...The authors have made a good attempt and explaining most concepts in reasonable terms and providing definitions for the obscure terms...." Read more

"...They describe the painstaking process by which scholars, image scientists and conservators exposed the writing hidden from view for centruries...." Read more

"...This book, clearly written and well-illustrated, would be a good choice for anyone who is interested in either classical scholarship, the history of..." Read more

"...I had a great understanding as to the importance of Archimedes in shaping the progression of high mathematical concepts in the western mind and how..." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • Neil DeWitte
    5.0 out of 5 stars Engaging and Intriguing Account of Science and Scholarship
    Reviewed in the United States on June 1, 2008
    Verified Purchase
    The Archimedes Codex is definitely deserving of 5 stars. If you like learning and discovering, this book is a top choice.

    The narrative details how a team of modern day scientists and classicists, funded by an anonymous and generous benefactor, uncover important intellectual history - a select group of proofs by antiquity's greatest mathematician, Archimedes of Syracuse.

    Having studied Latin and Greek in college along with taking introductory Calculus and Physics courses helped me appreciate this book - it was hard to put down. If you have no exposure to any of these academic areas, the book will probably still be of interest, but parts of it may go over your head. The authors have made a good attempt and explaining most concepts in reasonable terms and providing definitions for the obscure terms.

    This story of the Archimedes Codex is extraordinarily interesting - the conditions under which it sold and its history alone provide enough content for a full-length book. The heart of the book doesn't even involve these topics though. Preserving the codex and decoding the contents through a diligent scientific approach provides the most compelling part of the writing. As the contents of the codex are decoded, the authors provide a nice review of Archimedes' discoveries as they relate to geometry, physics and statistics.

    Decoding the work also uncovers previously unknown writings by at least one known ancient Greek orator, Hyperides.

    I only take two minor issues with the work:

    The first is that the author never makes it clear just how much new information has been decoded from the text in the modern studies vs. what was decoded in 1906 by Heiberg, a previous scholar. It could be 10% more or 50% more. The reader is just left to form her own judgment. To the authors' credit there was still research being conducted at the time of the book's printing and any such % would be subjective. Perhaps it is juvenile to ascribe a percentage to any discovery given the subject matter.

    The second issue is that I felt the author did not explain clearly why Archimedes knowledge/use of "actual infinity" is required for solving The Method in lieu of using "potential infinity." He needs to explain better why using potential infinity would preclude or fall short of solving the problem.

    In all this is a great book if you are interested in history, science or just the process of discovery in general.
    13 people found this helpful
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  • Kindle Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Archimedes da Man
    Reviewed in the United States on September 7, 2011
    Verified Purchase
    I devoured this book. I'm a sucker for science and mathematics history, and Archimedes of Syracuse combines both, so I was hoping to learn more about both aspects of the man's work; I got both and more. The detective story aspect of the palimpsest's history was engaging, and I enjoyed being able to look over the shoulders of the researchers as they struggled to read the nearly invisible words and diagrams on the parchment. I got a vicarious thrill following the mental process of modern scholars deciphering individual Greek characters -- sometimes from just a fragment of a character or from even just an accent mark. One author likens it to reconstructing a lower case "i" in an English text given only the dot (and lots of expertise about the language, its history, the handwriting habits of the scribe, and the nature of the text). Then, too, there are fascinating accounts of how philologists compare the words and styles from different ms. sources to ferret out different document lineages and their accumulated copying errors. Analysing these evolutionary paths allow reconstruction of what the originals most likely looked like when Archimedes himself wrote the text and drew the diagrams. But the best part for me was being walked through some of Archimedes' proofs and the insight this gives to the man's mind. Astonishing.

    It is true, the style and content differences between the alternating author chapters were sometimes annoying, but minimally so. For the most part I found them nicely complementary. One gives the scholarly nuts and bolts, the other the project managerial overview and history. Both are useful for understanding how the palimpsest came down to our time, and how it is being preserved, decoded, and interpreted.
    4 people found this helpful
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  • John
    4.0 out of 5 stars A gripping mathematical detective story
    Reviewed in the United States on October 31, 2023
    Verified Purchase
    The authors reveal the improbable but true story of a mediaeval manuscript which conceals a previously undiscovered work by Archimedes. They describe the painstaking process by which scholars, image scientists and conservators exposed the writing hidden from view for centruries. And they incidentally expose several old crimes, including murder and forgery. Some of the technical details are heavy going, but the authors' enthusiasm will carry you through.
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  • Melinda Ellison
    5.0 out of 5 stars The History of Mathematics Makes For An Enthralling Narrative
    Reviewed in the United States on May 29, 2022
    Verified Purchase
    Mathematics, Calculus, & Infinity is enthralling. This is especially true; when viewed from an historical perspective. Many people would be drawn to mathematics; if it was introduced with this in mind. There is more continuity of thought, dimension, and character; when the history of the subject is introduced. The people in the book who have their own particular expertise; add a wealth of understanding and dimension. The dedication to the acquisition of knowledge regarding Archimedes is inspirational. What is also, a plus, are the many surprises of additional historical discoveries regarding other people in history. This book is valuable in a myriad of ways. It is definitely worth reading. Indeed, it is an excellent book.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Rob Sedgwick
    5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating account
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 22, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    This book is an account of the detective work spanning many disciplines which led to the revealing of much of the text which is obscured by a medieval prayer book and other twentieth-century "forgeries". The author explains the maths that Archimedes wrote about. His enthusiasm for the subject is infectious, and he explains how it anticipated later science, especially Galileo and Newton. A good summary of a decade's work mainly done by professionals in their spare time.
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  • Ettore Baldini Neto
    4.0 out of 5 stars Muito interessante
    Reviewed in Brazil on July 18, 2017
    Verified Purchase
    Texto escrito em duas mãos. A parte histórica é muito interessante e muito bem descrita. Já a parte científica, embora também muito bem escrita, pode ser árida para o leitor leigo. Vale a leitura.
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  • Amazon Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars The math are easy to follow
    Reviewed in Canada on April 14, 2017
    Verified Purchase
    Very well done for the non-mathematicians. The math are easy to follow.
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  • Antonino Gentile
    5.0 out of 5 stars I bought this for my dad for his birthday!
    Reviewed in Canada on September 11, 2013
    Verified Purchase
    Buy this one for the history buff in your family. He certainly loved this book! It discusses the life and works of the great Greek philosopher Archimedes.
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  • Robert Scarth
    5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant Book
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 17, 2013
    Verified Purchase
    I really enjoyed reading this book and learnt a huge amount from it, about Archimedes, about the way that these ancient texts came down to us, and about the science and techniques used to conserve and read the documents.
    Reviel Netz writes about the mathematics. What I liked about this is that he properly engages with the mathematics, and explains what Archimedes' ideas were and why they are interesting and important. These explanations are generally quite clear, but sometimes a step is skipped without really alerting the reader; it takes bit of thought to realise that something has been omitted, and its not just that you're not seeing something obvious. This is slightly annoying, but is a minor criticism, and didn't detract very much from my enjoyment.
    William Noel writes about the palimpsest itself, about its journey through history, about it's condition, about how it is conserved, and about how it was read. This is every bit as fascinating as the mathematical discoveries, and very clearly and engagingly written.

    This is a very well written book, which I think would be enjoyed by anyone, not just those interested in mathematics or ancient history. Highly recommended.
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