At the Crossroads of the Scientific Revolution : Two French Seventeenth-Century Women of Science

The first translation of the works of early modern French woman scientists Martine de Bertereau and Marie Meurdrac.  The writings of mineralogist and hydrogeologist Martine de Bertereau (ca. 1584–ca. 1643) and alchemist and chemist Marie Meurdrac (ca. 1610–80) stand at the crossroads of the Scientific Revolution, a significant period between Copernicus and Newton that oversaw a new ferment in both the theoretical and empirical investigation of the natural world. Bertereau’s writings appear at the interface of a negotiation between an older form of knowledge, dating back to Aristotle, and a new scientific empiricism. She brilliantly addresses the relationship between knowledge and mining applications, as well as the roles of the king, the state, the market, and the public. Meurdrac published the first so-called chemistry book by a woman, which contributed to the various areas of scientific knowledge generally associated with alchemy in its development into chemistry, particularly medical cookery, botany, pharmacology, and cosmetology.  Bertereau’s and Meurdrac’s works illustrate this age of transition, a spectacular time of growth in ideas and discoveries for both men and women. This first-time translation of their works is an important step in restoring the voices of these early modern French women scientists.