Chapter 5. Paratexts in sixteenth-century editions and translations of Maciej z Miechowa’s Tractatus de duabus Sarmatiis
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Saskia Metan
Abstract
In 1517 the Cracovian scholar Maciej z Miechowa published Tractatus de duabus Sarmatiis, the first work in Renaissance geography which offered detailed information about Sarmatia, the region between the Vistula and the Caspian Sea. Published in several Latin editions, the treatise initiated the humanists’ scientific exchange of geographical knowledge about Eastern Europe. Moreover, translations in German, Polish, Dutch and Italian appeared, also addressing a non-scholarly readership. Although the literature on Maciej z Miechowa notes that the Tractatus has been broadly disseminated, its translations have been understudied. This is the purpose of the present chapter, which also highlights how the various translations of the Tractatus have led to significant modifications regarding the source text and its paratexts.
Abstract
In 1517 the Cracovian scholar Maciej z Miechowa published Tractatus de duabus Sarmatiis, the first work in Renaissance geography which offered detailed information about Sarmatia, the region between the Vistula and the Caspian Sea. Published in several Latin editions, the treatise initiated the humanists’ scientific exchange of geographical knowledge about Eastern Europe. Moreover, translations in German, Polish, Dutch and Italian appeared, also addressing a non-scholarly readership. Although the literature on Maciej z Miechowa notes that the Tractatus has been broadly disseminated, its translations have been understudied. This is the purpose of the present chapter, which also highlights how the various translations of the Tractatus have led to significant modifications regarding the source text and its paratexts.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgments vii
- Introduction 1
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Section A. Constructing and disseminating knowledge in–through translation
- Chapter 1. Reading scientific translations in the first half of sixteenth-century Europe through Hernando Colón’s library 17
- Chapter 2. Jérôme Lalande, Giuseppe Toaldo and the translation of astronomical works for a wider public in the 1700s 41
- Chapter 3. Travelling knowledge in nineteenth-century science 59
- Chapter 4. Translating the Iron Curtain 81
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Section B. Linguistic strategies and visual tools in the translation of knowledge
- Chapter 5. Paratexts in sixteenth-century editions and translations of Maciej z Miechowa’s Tractatus de duabus Sarmatiis 105
- Chapter 6. The Latin translation of Philosophical Transactions (1671–1681) 123
- Chapter 7. Knowledge in series 145
- Chapter 8. Knowledge transfer in the Soviet Union from the perspective of visual culture 169
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Section C. Institutions and translation policies
- Chapter 9. The Leviathan and the woods 189
- Chapter 10. Energetic visions 209
- Chapter 11. Science writing in Hindi in colonial India 229
- Chapter 12. An (imagined) community 249
- Index 269
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgments vii
- Introduction 1
-
Section A. Constructing and disseminating knowledge in–through translation
- Chapter 1. Reading scientific translations in the first half of sixteenth-century Europe through Hernando Colón’s library 17
- Chapter 2. Jérôme Lalande, Giuseppe Toaldo and the translation of astronomical works for a wider public in the 1700s 41
- Chapter 3. Travelling knowledge in nineteenth-century science 59
- Chapter 4. Translating the Iron Curtain 81
-
Section B. Linguistic strategies and visual tools in the translation of knowledge
- Chapter 5. Paratexts in sixteenth-century editions and translations of Maciej z Miechowa’s Tractatus de duabus Sarmatiis 105
- Chapter 6. The Latin translation of Philosophical Transactions (1671–1681) 123
- Chapter 7. Knowledge in series 145
- Chapter 8. Knowledge transfer in the Soviet Union from the perspective of visual culture 169
-
Section C. Institutions and translation policies
- Chapter 9. The Leviathan and the woods 189
- Chapter 10. Energetic visions 209
- Chapter 11. Science writing in Hindi in colonial India 229
- Chapter 12. An (imagined) community 249
- Index 269
