The Anatomy of Melancholy spotted in a Cambridge bookstore
August 9, 2008
Walking through Harvard Square with a frozen yogurt last night, I discovered a copy of Robert Burton’s 1621 classic The Anatomy of Melancholy on display in an antiquarian bookshop. Neat, as I’m currently learning about temperament. Melancholy is the cold and dry temperament: the contemplative.
Here’s the best my camera phone could do. The images on the frontispiece all have astrological symbols expressing different planetary combinations. Impossible to see here, even if you click to enlarge the image, but cool.
The Anatomy of Melancholy
And a shot of the opening poem, which specifically calls out Saturn as melancholy’s primary purveyor.
The opening poem...
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August 10, 2008 at 7:57 am
*sigh* I love old books like that. There is a little hole-in-the-wall bookstore by my office that I occasionally step into. One time several years ago, I saw Al-Biruni’s Elements of Astrology high up in a glass case. “Surely a reprint,” thought I. I asked to see it. Nope…it was one of Wright’s original first editions…only 99 or 100 copies of it in existence. I forget what number mine is…I’ll have to look when I get home (at the lake today). Do you know if there are any research or resource centers for traditional astrology here or in Europe? I’d be willing to donate my copy if it could be housed and made use of in such a place.
x Antonio
August 11, 2008 at 10:37 pm
Ciao bello!
Love that story. There ought to be some sort of traditional astro library/repository… let me park that on the back burner and see what bubbles up. Or better yet I can post something about it – ooh, or you could bring it up on TRA…