The Science of Naples : Making Knowledge in Italy’s Pre-Eminent City, 1500-1800

The story of Naples'' overlooked scientific contributions and its pivotal role in early modern European scientific culture.

Long neglected in the history of Renaissance and early modern Europe, in recent years scholars have revised the received understanding of the political and economic significance of the city of Naples and its rich artistic, musical, and political culture. Its importance in the history of science, however, has remained relatively unknown. The Science of Naples provides the first dedicated study of Neapolitan scientific culture in the English language. Drawing on contributions from leading experts in the field, this volume presents a series of studies that demonstrate Neapolitans’ manifold contributions to European scientific culture in the early modern period and considers the importance of the city, its institutions, and its surrounding territories for the production of new knowledge.

Individual chapters demonstrate the extent to which Neapolitan scholars and academies contributed to debates within the Republic of Letters that continued until deep into the nineteenth century, and how studies of Neapolitan natural disasters yielded unique insights that contributed to the development of fields such as medicine and volcanology. Taken together, these studies resituate the city of Naples as an integral part of a scientific culture that has increasingly globalized and present a rich and engaging portrait of the individuals who lived, worked, and made scientific knowledge there.