MERSENNE (Marin). Les questions théologiques, physiques, mor - Lot 24

MERSENNE (Marin). Les questions théologiques, physiques, morales et mathématiques [followed by] Les mechaniques de Galilée [followed by] Les préludes de l'harmonie universelle. Paris, Henry Guenon, 1634. 3 volumes in an in-8 volume, first edition of the first defense in French of Galileo's work, published only a year after his trial, and the translation of Galileo's Mécaniques. Les Mécaniques illustrated with 37 in-text engraved diagrams and Les Préludes with 4 in-text engravings of horoscopes. An exceptional copy, given directly by Mersenne to its first owner, containing both versions of the text (original and expurgated). Bound in full contemporary vellum, smooth titled spine. Ex-libris Josy Mazodier. Two three-page typescript letters signed by Pierre Bérès accompany the book, concerning a possible expert appraisal that probably never took place. Marin Mersenne, a member of the Order of Minimes, was one of the most important figures in the dissemination of new scientific ideas in the 17th century, and an early supporter of Galileo's discoveries. Nicknamed "the secretary general of learned Europe", he maintained an extensive correspondence with Europe's leading scientists. A close friend of Descartes, Gassendi and Hobbes, he himself conducted numerous experiments in a wide variety of fields, culminating in the formulation of the laws of gravity at the same time as Galileo. The Theological Questions cover a wide range of subjects, including the fall of bodies (question IV), the determination of longitude at sea (question XII), perpetual motion (question XV), squaring the circle (question XVI) and astrology (question XX), the properties of light (question XXI), the transparency of crystals (question XXIV), the qualities of hot and cold (question XXV), magnetism (question XXVII), religion and alchemy (question XXVIII), sunspots (question XXIX). Nevertheless, as John Lewis points out, "it was in his defense of Galileo that he [Mersenne] became best known". Despite obtaining the King's privilege for his work on June 20, 1634, the proximity in time of Galileo's trial and the reactions of the scientific and religious worlds to this event prompted Father Mersenne to amend his own work. As he put it in a letter to Fabri de Peiresc dated July 28, 1634: "I am sending you the three little tracts I have made, so that you may receive some satisfaction from them among your more serious occupations. I beg you to send Mr Doni, when you find the opportunity, those where his name is. Whose Questions morales, mathématiques, etc. are different from yours, because there are reasons for the movement of the Earth without refutation, for which I had put the sentence of the Cardinals for medicine, as you will see. But because I was told that there had been some noise among the Sorbonne doctors because of the reasons I did not refute, I omitted all the questions they could formalize, and put others that you will see in the book for Mr Doni, which will be more suitable for Rome." Mersenne replaces four of his questions in full, dealing directly with Galileo's discoveries. Question 34, "What reasons do we have for proving, for persuading, the movement of the Earth around its axis, in the space of twenty-four hours?", question 37, "What reasons can we have for believing that the Earth moves around the Sun, which we put at the center of the world?", and questions 44 and 45 on the movement of the Earth taking up Galileo's first and second speeches. The text then resumes with the publication of the "Sentence contre Galilée, contre ses Dialogues du mouvement de la Terre". However, Marin Mersenne never seems to have been entirely convinced of the heliocentric thesis. At first, he was a fervent opponent, before gradually reconsidering his position, giving more and more credence to Galileo's theories, while recognizing the legitimacy of his condemnation. Although he seemed to adopt a conception of the solar system close to that of Tycho Brahe, the quality of Galileo's results obliged him to defend it as a man of science. According to John Lewis, author of the seminal article on this work, copies not "self-censored" by Mersenne are extremely rare. The three copies in the Bibliothèque Nationale de France are redacted, as are the copies in Italian public collections, and only two copies in the Bibliothèque de l'Arsenal contain the original text. To these copies should be added that of the Bibliothèque des Facultés Loyo