Athanasius Kircher
Athanasius Kircher (2 May 1602 – 27 November 1680) was a German Jesuit scholar and polymath who published around 40 major works of comparative religion, geology, and medicine. Kircher has been compared to fellow Jesuit Roger Joseph Boscovich and to Leonardo da Vinci for his vast range of interests, and has been honoured with the title "Master of a Hundred Arts". He taught for more than 40 years at the Roman College, where he set up a wunderkammer. A resurgence of interest in Kircher has occurred within the scholarly community in recent decades.Kircher claimed to have deciphered the hieroglyphic writing of the ancient Egyptian language, but most of his assumptions and translations in the field turned out to be wrong. He did, however, correctly establish the link between the ancient Egyptian and the Coptic languages, and some commentators regard him as the founder of Egyptology. Kircher was also fascinated with Sinology and wrote an encyclopedia of China, where he revealed the early presence of Nestorian Christians while also attempting to establish links with Egypt and Christianity.
Kircher's work in geology included studies of volcanoes and fossils. One of the first researchers to observe microbes through a microscope, Kircher was ahead of his time in proposing that the plague was caused by an infectious microorganism and in suggesting effective measures to prevent its spread. Kircher also displayed a keen interest in technology and mechanical inventions; inventions attributed to him include a magnetic clock, various automatons and the first megaphone. The invention of the magic lantern has been misattributed to Kircher, although he conducted a study of the principles involved in his ''Ars Magna Lucis et Umbrae''.
A scientific star in his day, towards the end of his life he was eclipsed by the rationalism of René Descartes and others. In the late 20th century, however, the aesthetic qualities of his work again began to be appreciated. One modern scholar, Alan Cutler, described Kircher as "a giant among seventeenth-century scholars", and "one of the last thinkers who could rightfully claim all knowledge as his domain". Another scholar, Edward W. Schmidt, referred to Kircher as "the last Renaissance man". In ''A Man of Misconceptions,'' his 2012 book about Kircher, John Glassie wrote "many of Kircher's actual ideas today seem wildly off-base, if not simply bizarre," but he was "a champion of wonder, a man of awe-inspiring erudition and inventiveness," whose work was read "by the smartest minds of the time." Provided by Wikipedia
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1by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: William H. Hannon Library, Loyola Marymount University
Created 1987
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2by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: William H. Hannon Library, Loyola Marymount University
Created 1673
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3by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: William H. Hannon Library, Loyola Marymount University
Created 1671
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4by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: William H. Hannon Library, Loyola Marymount University
Created 1672
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5by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: William H. Hannon Library, Loyola Marymount University
Created 1669
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6by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: William H. Hannon Library, Loyola Marymount University
Created 1657
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7by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: William H. Hannon Library, Loyola Marymount University
Created 1656
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8by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: William H. Hannon Library, Loyola Marymount University
Created 1636
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9by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: William H. Hannon Library, Loyola Marymount University
Created 1667
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10by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: William H. Hannon Library, Loyola Marymount University
Created 1654
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11by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: William H. Hannon Library, Loyola Marymount University
Created 1666
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12by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: William H. Hannon Library, Loyola Marymount University
Created 1671
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13by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: William H. Hannon Library, Loyola Marymount University
Created 1678
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14by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: William H. Hannon Library, Loyola Marymount University
Created 1680
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15by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: William H. Hannon Library, Loyola Marymount University
Created 1650
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16by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: William H. Hannon Library, Loyola Marymount University
Created 1676
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20by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Other Authors: “...Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680...”
Created 1660
Location: John J. Burns Library, Boston College
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33by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: Dinand Library, College of the Holy Cross
Created 1671
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34by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: Dinand Library, College of the Holy Cross
Created 1679
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35by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: Dinand Library, College of the Holy Cross
Created 1667
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36by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: Dinand Library, College of the Holy Cross
Created 1652
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37by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: Dinand Library, College of the Holy Cross
Created 1650
Internet Archive, UNC Chapel Hill copy
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38by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: Dinand Library, College of the Holy Cross
Created 1636
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43by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: Hesburgh Libraries, University of Notre Dame
Created 1656
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44by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: Cudahy Archives, Loyola University Chicago
Created 1668
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45by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: Cudahy Archives, Loyola University Chicago
Created 1680
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46by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: Cudahy Archives, Loyola University Chicago
Created 1660
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47by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: Cudahy Archives, Loyola University Chicago
Created 1669
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48by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: Cudahy Archives, Loyola University Chicago
Created 1650
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49by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: Cudahy Archives, Loyola University Chicago
Created 1671
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50by Kircher, Athanasius, 1602-1680Location: Cudahy Archives, Loyola University Chicago
Created 1636
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