Author: REISCH, Gregorius.

Title; Margarita philosophica totius philosophiae rationalisjnaturalis &

moralis principia dialogice duodecim libris complectens.

Publication: [Freiburg im Breisgau: J. Schott, before July, 1503].

The Margarita Philosophica first came out in 1503.

Roughly translated, the title Margarita Philosophica

means 'pearl of knowledge'. The Margarita

Philosophica was the most important and longest

encyclopaedia of knowledge in the Middle Ages and

early Renaissance. It contained ali the knowledge

that students were supposed to learn about and was

used as the main textbook in universities.

The author of the Margarita Philosophica was

someone called Gregorius Reisch. Gregorius Reisch

was a monk and taught in the University of Freiburg

that is.jn the south of Germany. Freiburg University

was opened on the 26th Aprii, 1460. When it was

opened it only had seven teachers for 214 students.

It also only had four different departments: a

theology department (for studying religion), a law

department, a medicai department and an arts

department.

First edition of the first printed encyclopedia, extremely rare with the

originai map and in the originai binding. This important book of the

German Renaissance was considered the tree of ali knowledge. It treats

mathematics, cosmography, music, natural history, minerals, astronomy

and medicine. The illustrations, which are of great scientific and historical

interest, are some of the earliest known of the various subjects. The world

map is important to the history of cartography being of the old ptolemaic

kind but has the degrees of longitude and latitude market, possibly a

reference to the American continent.