---
title: "Antiquarian science books"
chunk: 1/3
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antiquarian_science_books"
category: "reference"
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
date_saved: "2026-05-05T03:38:33.355953+00:00"
instance: "kb-cron"
---

Antiquarian science books are original historical works (e.g., books or technical papers) concerning science, mathematics and sometimes engineering. These books are important primary references for the study of the history of science and technology, they can provide valuable insights into the historical development of the various fields of scientific inquiry (History of science, History of mathematics, etc.)

The landmark are significant first (or early) editions typically worth hundreds or thousands of dollars (prices may vary widely based on condition, etc.). 
Reprints of these books are often available, for example from Great Books of the Western World, Dover Publications or Google Books.
Incunabula are extremely rare and valuable, but as the Scientific Revolution is only taken to have started around the 1540s, such works of Renaissance literature (including alchemy, Renaissance magic, etc.) are not usually included under the notion of "scientific" literature. Printed originals of the beginning Scientific Revolution thus date to the 1540s or later, notably beginning with the original publication of Copernican heliocentrism. Nicolaus Copernicus' De revolutionibus orbium coelestium of 1543 sold for more than US$2 million at auctions.

== List of notable books ==

=== 16th century ===
Tartaglia, Niccolò. Nova Scientia (A New Science). Venice, 1537. Ballistics.
Biringuccio, Vannoccio. De la pirotechnia. Venice, 1540. Metallurgy.
Fuchs, Leonhart. De Historia Stirpium Commentarii Insignes. Basel, 1542. Botany.
Copernicus, Nicolaus. De revolutionibus orbium coelestium. Wittenberg, 1543. Copernican heliocentrism.
Vesalius, Andreas. De humani corporis fabrica (On the Structure of the Human Body). Basel, 1543. Anatomy.
Cardano, Gerolamo. Artis magnae sive de regulis algebraicis (The Art of Solving Algebraic Equations). Nuremberg, 1545. Algebra.
Brunfels, Otto. Kreuterbüch, 1546. Botany.
Gessner, Conrad. Historia Animalium 1551-58. Zoology
Bock, Hieronymus. Kreutterbuch. Strasbourg, 1552. Botany.
Paracelsus. Theil der grossen Wundartzney. Frankfurt, 1556. Medicine.
Agricola, Georgius. De re metallica. Basel, 1561. Mineralogy.
Regiomontanus. De triangulis planis et sphaericis libri quinque. Basel, 1561. Trigonometry.
Bombelli, Rafael. Algebra.  1569/1572. Imaginary numbers.
Cesalpino, Andrea. De plantis libri XVI. 1583. Taxonomy.
Bruno, Giordano. De l'infinito, universo e mondi. 1584 Cosmology.
Stevin, Simon. De Thiende. 1585. Decimal numeral system.
Stevin, Simon. De Beghinselen der Weeghconst. 1586. Statics.
Brahe, Tycho. Astronomiae Instauratae Progymnasmata. 1588. Astronomy.
Viète, François. In artem analyticum isagoge (Introduction to the Analytical Art). Tours, 1591. Algebra.
Ruini, Carlo. Anatomia del Cavallo. Venice, 1598. Veterinary medicine.

=== 17th century ===
Gilbert, William. De Magnete. London, 1600 Magnetism
Galilei, Galileo. Sidereus Nuncius (The Starry Messenger). Frankfurt, 1610. Astronomy
Napier, John. Mirifici Logarithmorum Canonis Descriptio, 1614. Logarithms
Kepler, Johannes. Harmonices Mundi. Linz, 1619. Celestial mechanics
Bacon, Francis. Novum Organum. London, 1620. Experimentation
Galilei, Galileo. Dialogo sopra i due massimi sistemi del mondo Tolemaico, e Coperniciano. Florence, 1632. Heliocentrism
Descartes, René. Discours de la Methode / La Geometrie. Leiden, 1637 Analytical geometry
Fermat, Pierre de. Methodus ad disquirendam maximam et minimam, 1638. Calculus
Galilei, Galileo. Discorsi e dimostrazioni matematiche, intorno a due nuove scienze. Leiden, 1638. Classical dynamics
Desargues, Gérard. Brouillon-project d'une atteinte aux evenemens des rencontres du cone avec un plan, 1639. Projective geometry.
Harvey, William. Exercitatio Anatomica de Motu Cordis et Sanguinis in Animalibus (Anatomical Exercises, Concerning the Heart and Blood) London, 1653. Circulatory system
Wallis, John. Arithmetica infinitorum, 1655. Calculus
Boyle, Robert. The Sceptical Chymist. London, 1661. Chemistry
Pascal, Blaise. Traitez de l'Equilibre des Liqueurs, et de la Pesanteur de la Masse de l'Air. Paris, 1663. Fluid statics
Gregory, James. Optica Promota, 1663. Optics
Hooke, Robert. Micrographia. London, 1665. Microscopy
Steno, Nicolas. De Solido intra Solidum Naturaliter Contento Dissertationis Prodromus. Florence, 1669. Stratigraphy
Barrow, Isaac. Lectiones geometricae, 1670. Calculus
von Guericke, Otto. Experimenta Nova (ut vocantur) Magdeburgica de Vacuo Spatio. Magdeburger Halbkugeln, 1672. Experimental physics
Huygens, Christiaan. Horologium Oscillatorium. Paris, 1673. Pendulus.
Fermat, Pierre de. Ad locus planos et solidos isagoge, 1679. Analytic geometry
Leibniz, Gottfried. Nova Methodus pro Maximis et Minimis, 1684. Calculus
Newton, Isaac. Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica. London, 3 Vol, 1687. Classical mechanics
Huygens, Christiaan. Traité de la Lumière. Leiden, 1690. Optics
Leibniz, Gottfried Wilhelm. Specimen Dynamicum. Vienna, 1695. Classical mechanics
van Leeuwenhoek, Antonie. Arcana Naturae, Ope & Beneficio Exquisitissimorum Microscopiorum. Leiden, 1696. Microbiology
l'Hôpital, Guillaume de. Analyse des infiniment petits. Paris, 1696. Calculus

=== 18th century ===
Newton, Isaac (England). Opticks. London, 1704. Optics
Taylor, Brook (England). Methodus Incrementorum Directa et Inversa, 1715. Taylor series
Linnaeus, Carl (Sweden). Systema Naturae. Netherlands, 1735. Linnaean taxonomy
Bernoulli, Daniel (Netherlands). Hydrodynamica. Strasbourg, 1738, Fluid dynamics
d'Alembert, Jean le Rond (France). Réflexions sur la cause générale des vents, 1747. Complex numbers
Euler, Leonhard (Switzerland). Introductio in analysin infinitorum. Lausanne, 1748. Mathematical analysis
Franklin, Benjamin (America). Experiments and Observations on Electricity. London/Philadelphia, 1751. Electricity
Bayes, Thomas (England). An Essay Towards Solving a Problem in the Doctrine of Chances. London, 1763. Inverse probability
Volta, Alessandro (Italy). De vi attractiva ignis electrici, ac phaenomenis inde pendentibus, 1769. Electricity
Smith, Adam (Scotland). An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations. London, 2 Vol, 1776. Capitalism
Monge, Gaspard (France). Sur la théorie des déblais et des remblais, 1781. Descriptive geometry.
Lagrange, Joseph (Italy). Mécanique analytique. Paris, 1788. Dynamics
Hutton, James (Scotland). Theory of the Earth. Edinburgh, 1788. Geology
Lavoisier, Antoine (France). Traité Élémentaire de Chimie (Elements of Chemistry). Paris, 2 Vol, 1789. Chemistry
Galvani, Luigi (Italy). De viribus electricitatis in motu musculari commentarius Bologna, 1791. Electricity
Legendre, Adrien-Marie (France). Essai sur la théorie des nombres. Paris, 1798. Number theory
Jenner, Edward (England). An Inquiry into the Causes and Effects of the Variolæ Vaccinæ. 1798. Immunology
Wessel, Caspar (Norway). Om directionens analytiske betegning. Copenhagen, 1799. Imaginary numbers
Ruffini, Paolo (Italy). Teoria generale dele equazioni, in cui si dimostra impossibile. La soluzione algebraica delle equazioni generali di grado superiore al quatro. Bologna, 1799. Algebra