Table Of ContentKNOWLEDGE, TEXT AND PRACTICE IN
ANCIENT TECHNICAL WRITING
The relationship between theory and practice, between norms indi-
catedinatextandtheirextra-textualapplication,isoneofthemost
fascinatingissuesinthehistoryandtheoryofscience.Yetthisaspect
has often been taken for granted and never explored in depth. The
essayscontainedinthisvolumeprovideamulti-layeredandnuanced
discussion of this relationship as it emerges in ancient Greek and
Roman culture in a number of fields, such as agriculture, architec-
ture, the art of love, astronomy, ethics, mechanics, medicine and
pharmacology. The main focus is on the textuality of processes of
transmissionofknowledgeanditsapplicationinvariousfields.Given
that a text always contains complex and destabilizing aspects that
cannotbereducedtothespecificsubjectmatteritdiscusses,towhat
extentcananddoancienttextssupportextra-textualapplicability?
marcoformisanoisProfessorofLatinLiteratureatGhentUniver-
sity.Hehaspublishedextensivelyonancienttechnicalandscientific
writing.Hisfirstmonograph,Tecnicaescrittura(2001),wasdedicated
tolateLatinscientifictexts.Hehasstudiedtheancientartofwaras
a literary genre and its tradition (Vegezio, Arte della guerra romana
(2003) and War in Words: Transformations of War from Antiquity to
Clausewitz, co-edited with H. Bo¨hme (2012)), as well as Vitruvius
(Vitruvius in the Round, co-edited with S. Cuomo, special issue of
Arethusa, 2016). He is the editor of a series devoted to late antique
literatureentitled‘TheLibraryoftheOtherAntiquity’.
philip van der eijkisAlexandervonHumboldtProfessorofClas-
sicsandHistoryofScienceattheHumboldt-Universita¨tzuBerlin.He
haspublishedonancientmedicine,philosophyandscience,compar-
ativeliteratureandpatristics.HeistheauthorofAristoteles:Deinsom-
niis,Dedivinationepersomnum(1994);DioclesofCarystus(2000–1);
PhiloponusonAristotleontheSoul1(2005–6);MedicineandPhilosophy
inClassicalAntiquity(2005);and,withR.W.Sharples,ofNemesius:
On the Nature of Man (2008). He has edited Ancient Histories of
Medicine (1999) and Hippocrates in Context (2005), and co-edited
AncientMedicineinItsSocio-CulturalContext(1995).
Downloaded from https:/www.cambridge.org/core. Columbia University Libraries, on 31 May 2017 at 20:05:46, subject to the Cambridge
Core terms of use, available at https:/www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316718575
Downloaded from https:/www.cambridge.org/core. Columbia University Libraries, on 31 May 2017 at 20:05:46, subject to the Cambridge
Core terms of use, available at https:/www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316718575
KNOWLEDGE, TEXT AND
PRACTICE IN ANCIENT
TECHNICAL WRITING
edited by
MARCO FORMISANO
GhentUniversity
PHILIP VAN DER EIJK
Humboldt-Universita¨tzuBerlin
Downloaded from https:/www.cambridge.org/core. Columbia University Libraries, on 31 May 2017 at 20:05:46, subject to the Cambridge
Core terms of use, available at https:/www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316718575
UniversityPrintingHouse,Cambridgecb28bs,UnitedKingdom
OneLibertyPlaza,20thFloor,NewYork,ny10006,usa
477WilliamstownRoad,PortMelbourne,vic3207,Australia
4843/24,2ndFloor,AnsariRoad,Daryaganj,Delhi-110002,India
79AnsonRoad,#06-04/06,Singapore079906
CambridgeUniversityPressispartoftheUniversityofCambridge.
ItfurtherstheUniversity’smissionbydisseminatingknowledgeinthepursuitof
education,learningandresearchatthehighestinternationallevelsofexcellence.
www.cambridge.org
Informationonthistitle:www.cambridge.org/9781107169432
doi:10.1017/9781316718575
(cid:2)C CambridgeUniversityPress2017
Thispublicationisincopyright.Subjecttostatutoryexception
andtotheprovisionsofrelevantcollectivelicensingagreements,
noreproductionofanypartmaytakeplacewithoutthewritten
permissionofCambridgeUniversityPress.
Firstpublished2017
PrintedintheUnitedKingdombyClays,StIvesplc
AcataloguerecordforthispublicationisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary
LibraryofCongressCataloginginPublicationdata
Names:Formisano,Marco,editor.|Eijk,Ph.J.vander(PhilipJ.),editor.
Title:Knowledge,textandpracticeinancienttechnicalwriting/editedbyMarcoFormisano,
PhilipvanderEijk.
Description:Cambridge:CambridgeUniversityPress,2017.|Includesindex.
Identifiers:lccn2016035987|isbn9781107169432
Subjects:LCSH:Technicalwriting–Historyandcriticism.|Classicalliterature–Historyand
criticism.|Technology–Greece–History.|Technology–Rome–History.
Classification:lcct11.k6352017|ddc609.38–dc23
LCrecordavailableathttps://lccn.loc.gov/2016035987
isbn978-1-107-16943-2Hardback
CambridgeUniversityPresshasnoresponsibilityforthepersistenceoraccuracy
ofurlsforexternalorthird-partyinternetwebsitesreferredtointhispublication
anddoesnotguaranteethatanycontentonsuchwebsitesis,orwillremain,
accurateorappropriate.
Downloaded from https:/www.cambridge.org/core. Columbia University Libraries, on 31 May 2017 at 20:05:46, subject to the Cambridge
Core terms of use, available at https:/www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316718575
KNOWLEDGE, TEXT AND PRACTICE IN
ANCIENT TECHNICAL WRITING
The relationship between theory and practice, between norms indi-
catedinatextandtheirextra-textualapplication,isoneofthemost
fascinatingissuesinthehistoryandtheoryofscience.Yetthisaspect
has often been taken for granted and never explored in depth. The
essayscontainedinthisvolumeprovideamulti-layeredandnuanced
discussion of this relationship as it emerges in ancient Greek and
Roman culture in a number of fields, such as agriculture, architec-
ture, the art of love, astronomy, ethics, mechanics, medicine and
pharmacology. The main focus is on the textuality of processes of
transmissionofknowledgeanditsapplicationinvariousfields.Given
that a text always contains complex and destabilizing aspects that
cannotbereducedtothespecificsubjectmatteritdiscusses,towhat
extentcananddoancienttextssupportextra-textualapplicability?
marcoformisanoisProfessorofLatinLiteratureatGhentUniver-
sity.Hehaspublishedextensivelyonancienttechnicalandscientific
writing.Hisfirstmonograph,Tecnicaescrittura(2001),wasdedicated
tolateLatinscientifictexts.Hehasstudiedtheancientartofwaras
a literary genre and its tradition (Vegezio, Arte della guerra romana
(2003) and War in Words: Transformations of War from Antiquity to
Clausewitz, co-edited with H. Bo¨hme (2012)), as well as Vitruvius
(Vitruvius in the Round, co-edited with S. Cuomo, special issue of
Arethusa, 2016). He is the editor of a series devoted to late antique
literatureentitled‘TheLibraryoftheOtherAntiquity’.
philip van der eijkisAlexandervonHumboldtProfessorofClas-
sicsandHistoryofScienceattheHumboldt-Universita¨tzuBerlin.He
haspublishedonancientmedicine,philosophyandscience,compar-
ativeliteratureandpatristics.HeistheauthorofAristoteles:Deinsom-
niis,Dedivinationepersomnum(1994);DioclesofCarystus(2000–1);
PhiloponusonAristotleontheSoul1(2005–6);MedicineandPhilosophy
inClassicalAntiquity(2005);and,withR.W.Sharples,ofNemesius:
On the Nature of Man (2008). He has edited Ancient Histories of
Medicine (1999) and Hippocrates in Context (2005), and co-edited
AncientMedicineinItsSocio-CulturalContext(1995).
Downloaded from https:/www.cambridge.org/core. Columbia University Libraries, on 31 May 2017 at 20:05:35, subject to the Cambridge
Core terms of use, available at https:/www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316718575
Downloaded from https:/www.cambridge.org/core. Columbia University Libraries, on 31 May 2017 at 20:05:35, subject to the Cambridge
Core terms of use, available at https:/www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316718575
KNOWLEDGE, TEXT AND
PRACTICE IN ANCIENT
TECHNICAL WRITING
edited by
MARCO FORMISANO
GhentUniversity
PHILIP VAN DER EIJK
Humboldt-Universita¨tzuBerlin
Downloaded from https:/www.cambridge.org/core. Columbia University Libraries, on 31 May 2017 at 20:05:35, subject to the Cambridge
Core terms of use, available at https:/www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316718575
UniversityPrintingHouse,Cambridgecb28bs,UnitedKingdom
OneLibertyPlaza,20thFloor,NewYork,ny10006,usa
477WilliamstownRoad,PortMelbourne,vic3207,Australia
4843/24,2ndFloor,AnsariRoad,Daryaganj,Delhi-110002,India
79AnsonRoad,#06-04/06,Singapore079906
CambridgeUniversityPressispartoftheUniversityofCambridge.
ItfurtherstheUniversity’smissionbydisseminatingknowledgeinthepursuitof
education,learningandresearchatthehighestinternationallevelsofexcellence.
www.cambridge.org
Informationonthistitle:www.cambridge.org/9781107169432
doi:10.1017/9781316718575
(cid:2)C CambridgeUniversityPress2017
Thispublicationisincopyright.Subjecttostatutoryexception
andtotheprovisionsofrelevantcollectivelicensingagreements,
noreproductionofanypartmaytakeplacewithoutthewritten
permissionofCambridgeUniversityPress.
Firstpublished2017
PrintedintheUnitedKingdombyClays,StIvesplc
AcataloguerecordforthispublicationisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary
LibraryofCongressCataloginginPublicationdata
Names:Formisano,Marco,editor.|Eijk,Ph.J.vander(PhilipJ.),editor.
Title:Knowledge,textandpracticeinancienttechnicalwriting/editedbyMarcoFormisano,
PhilipvanderEijk.
Description:Cambridge:CambridgeUniversityPress,2017.|Includesindex.
Identifiers:lccn2016035987|isbn9781107169432
Subjects:LCSH:Technicalwriting–Historyandcriticism.|Classicalliterature–Historyand
criticism.|Technology–Greece–History.|Technology–Rome–History.
Classification:lcct11.k6352017|ddc609.38–dc23
LCrecordavailableathttps://lccn.loc.gov/2016035987
isbn978-1-107-16943-2Hardback
CambridgeUniversityPresshasnoresponsibilityforthepersistenceoraccuracy
ofurlsforexternalorthird-partyinternetwebsitesreferredtointhispublication
anddoesnotguaranteethatanycontentonsuchwebsitesis,orwillremain,
accurateorappropriate.
Downloaded from https:/www.cambridge.org/core. Columbia University Libraries, on 31 May 2017 at 20:05:35, subject to the Cambridge
Core terms of use, available at https:/www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316718575
KNOWLEDGE, TEXT AND PRACTICE IN
ANCIENT TECHNICAL WRITING
The relationship between theory and practice, between norms indi-
catedinatextandtheirextra-textualapplication,isoneofthemost
fascinatingissuesinthehistoryandtheoryofscience.Yetthisaspect
has often been taken for granted and never explored in depth. The
essayscontainedinthisvolumeprovideamulti-layeredandnuanced
discussion of this relationship as it emerges in ancient Greek and
Roman culture in a number of fields, such as agriculture, architec-
ture, the art of love, astronomy, ethics, mechanics, medicine and
pharmacology. The main focus is on the textuality of processes of
transmissionofknowledgeanditsapplicationinvariousfields.Given
that a text always contains complex and destabilizing aspects that
cannotbereducedtothespecificsubjectmatteritdiscusses,towhat
extentcananddoancienttextssupportextra-textualapplicability?
marcoformisanoisProfessorofLatinLiteratureatGhentUniver-
sity.Hehaspublishedextensivelyonancienttechnicalandscientific
writing.Hisfirstmonograph,Tecnicaescrittura(2001),wasdedicated
tolateLatinscientifictexts.Hehasstudiedtheancientartofwaras
a literary genre and its tradition (Vegezio, Arte della guerra romana
(2003) and War in Words: Transformations of War from Antiquity to
Clausewitz, co-edited with H. Bo¨hme (2012)), as well as Vitruvius
(Vitruvius in the Round, co-edited with S. Cuomo, special issue of
Arethusa, 2016). He is the editor of a series devoted to late antique
literatureentitled‘TheLibraryoftheOtherAntiquity’.
philip van der eijkisAlexandervonHumboldtProfessorofClas-
sicsandHistoryofScienceattheHumboldt-Universita¨tzuBerlin.He
haspublishedonancientmedicine,philosophyandscience,compar-
ativeliteratureandpatristics.HeistheauthorofAristoteles:Deinsom-
niis,Dedivinationepersomnum(1994);DioclesofCarystus(2000–1);
PhiloponusonAristotleontheSoul1(2005–6);MedicineandPhilosophy
inClassicalAntiquity(2005);and,withR.W.Sharples,ofNemesius:
On the Nature of Man (2008). He has edited Ancient Histories of
Medicine (1999) and Hippocrates in Context (2005), and co-edited
AncientMedicineinItsSocio-CulturalContext(1995).
Downloaded from https:/www.cambridge.org/core. Columbia University Libraries, on 31 May 2017 at 20:05:46, subject to the Cambridge
Core terms of use, available at https:/www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316718575
Downloaded from https:/www.cambridge.org/core. Columbia University Libraries, on 31 May 2017 at 20:05:46, subject to the Cambridge
Core terms of use, available at https:/www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316718575
