Mécanique Céleste

Mécanique Céleste
by Pierre Simon Laplace
Adopted for Conservation by
William Theodor
on May 30, 2013
Mécanique céleste

Mécanique céleste

By Pierre Simon Laplace. Boston: Hillard, Gray, Little, and Wilkins, 1829-1839.

Pierre-Simon Laplace was a mathematician who firmly believed the world was entirely deterministic. Like a man with a hammer to whom everything was a nail, to Laplace the universe was nothing but a giant problem in calculus. Laplace's Mécanique céleste (Celestial Mechanics), essentially translated Newton's geometrical study of mechanics to one based on calculus.

Condition and Treatment: 

All four volumes of this set are in full sheepskin bindings. One volume requires no treatment, but the leather spine-coverings of the three remaining volumes are either loose or detached, and must be repaired by Conservators. The front cover and the first section of text in volume three are detached and must be fixed.

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Adoption Type: Preserve for the Future

Location: 
Dibner Library of the History of Science and Technology