Science & Technology

Isaac Newton science book sells for $3.7M

By T.K. Randall
December 21, 2016 ·  5 comments

Isaac Newton is often considered to be the father of modern science. Image Credit: Public Domain Described by Albert Einstein as "perhaps the greatest intellectual stride that it has ever been granted to any man to make," the book, which is entitled Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica ( or Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy ), was passed to astronomer Edmond Halley for editing before being printed and sold in London back in 1687.

The goat-skinned tome, which contains 252 leaves and several woodcut diagrams, is one of only two copies sold at auction in the last 47 years making it an extremely rare item indeed.Expected to sell for over $1M, it eventually went for $3.7M to an unnamed bidder.

A rare European first edition of Sir Isaac Newton's Principia Mathematica auctions for $3.7m (£3m) https://t.co/5f4PPaW4Ww pic.twitter.com/8hmi4SYowa

— The Royal Society (@royalsociety) December 20, 2016

"It's not just the history and development of science; it's one of the greatest books ever published," said Keith Moore, head of the Royal Society library.

"It was hugely influential in terms of applying mathematics to basic physical problems."

Source: Live Science | Comments (5)

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