The digital library dedicated to the controversy over comets reconstructs the historical, iconographic, and textual atmosphere of the heated debate, from 1618 to 1626, sparked by the appearance of three celestial bodies in 1618. Natural philosophers, mathematicians, and astronomers investigated and argued over the composition, position, and movement of these “celestial splendors.”
Visit the digital library "La disputa sulle comete (1618-1626)", Italian only
The digital collection allows readers to examine the sources of the controversy through various modes of navigation. The Explore function opens multimedia resources divided into three subsections: Texts, Iconography, and Debate, each organized in a hierarchical structure that leads to digitized texts. The iconographic apparatus contains nearly 80 images relating to comets, while the thematic area devoted to Galileo’s Saggiatore reveals the historical context underlying the bitter dispute between the great Tuscan astronomer and Orazio Grassi.
The thematic digital library is published on the occasion of the exhibition
Celestial Splendours. L'osservazione del cielo da Galileo alle onde gravitazionali (Observing the sky from Galileo to gravitational waves)
Firenze, Monumental Complex of Santa Maria Novella, 16 December 2023 - 17 March 2024.