A 15th-16th Century Luni-Solar Volvelle
Apologies for being so quiet lately. There’s a few things that have been on my plate recently. One of the big ones has been some research for a new video for the YouTube channel. What I thought was going to be reading 2 books and a handful of paper has turned into 6 books an undergraduate thesis, and a handful of papers. Needless to say, it’s taken much longer than expected.
However, while doing that research I encountered this image.
This is from the Universitätsbibliothek Heidelberg, cod. Pal. germ. 832, fol 16r (1491) and it’s a stunningly beautiful volvelle. I knew I wanted to look into it further and thought I bookmarked it, but, when I came back a few days later, I couldn’t find it. I did remember some key words, and was able to find some similar volvelles. Continue reading “A 15th-16th Century Luni-Solar Volvelle”
Understanding Ptolemy’s Almagest: Book V
2025 in Review
2025 was a busy year. Outside the astronomy work, my (then) fiancée was diagnosed with MS, we had our wedding, had to put down our cat, adopted a new cat, bought a house and moved, and had our honeymoon. So, it was a big year.
But how did I do with astronomy? Continue reading “2025 in Review”
Understanding Ptolemy’s Almagest: Book IV
How I Spent My Italian Vacation
Sicily’s Golden Age of Astronomy
My second video from my trip to Italy.
Ingazio Danti and the Gregorian Calendar Reform
Sorry for the slow posting. I was gone for half of October and the first week of November. Why?
I was on a European adventure to Italy and Greece. Part honeymoon, part collecting material for some new videos. Here’s the first of them!
Astronomicum Caesareum Facsimile Restoration Project – The Constellation Volvelle
The first volvelle in Astronomicum Caesareum is the constellation volvelle. It depicts a view of the northern constellations to a declination of approximately -20º. The depiction is based on a 1515 star map by Albrecht Durer. Continue reading “Astronomicum Caesareum Facsimile Restoration Project – The Constellation Volvelle”
Instrumentum Primi Mobilis – A Medieval Calculator
I’m really excited to post this video. It is the culmination of a lot of work. Not just research, but also in producing the instrument, translating, and visiting the Linda Hall Library to work with the original source material.