Systema Cosmicum

Description

**First edition printed in England and third Latin edition of the Dialogue.** Following the conclusion of the *Dialogue*, the text includes an extract concerning Kepler's and Foscarini's reconciliation of the Copernican system with the Holy Scriptures. This edition is exceptionally rare on the market and at auction, with only four copies recorded at auction over the past 50 years. The *Dialogue* represents the culmination of Galileo's astronomical work and the celebrated advancement of the Copernican system, presented in the form of an irrefutable hypothesis. The inconclusive debate on the subject among the three participants, as envisaged by Pope Urban VIII, was scarcely reflected in Salviati's confident reasoning, Sagredo's incisive questioning, and Simplicio's weak responses (a character sometimes identified with the Pope himself). Although the hypothetical nature of the argument must not be overlooked, Galileo's book "delights in the simplicity of Copernican thought and, above all, demonstrates that the motion of the Earth makes sense in philosophy, that is, in physics... The Dialogue, more than any other work, made the heliocentric system a commonly accepted concept" (PMM). The first Italian edition (Florence, 1632) was banned by the Pope and withdrawn from circulation shortly after publication, leading to the author's trial and imprisonment the following year. It was followed by the first Latin edition, published in Strasbourg in 1635, translated by Matthias Bernegger, a professor of History and mathematics enthusiast, at Galileo's own request. **This particular copy possesses exceptional historical significance**, as it bears the handwritten inscription "Ex Libris Jos. Del’Isle 1710" at the top of the title page. This volume therefore preserves the signature of the distinguished French astronomer Joseph-Nicolas Delisle, who was only 22 years old in 1710, at the very beginning of his brilliant scientific career.