ZIEGLER, Jacob.
FERMENTATION IS EVERYTHING
Fermentatio generatione et corruptionis causa.
Basel, Beii Johan Jacob Genath, 1647£4,750.00
FIRST EDITION. 4to. pp. (viii) 64 (iv). Black letter with italic. Etched t-p, 14 further 2/3 page etchings to verso of t-p and text, including 2 world maps, one after Mercator. Woodcut and typographical initials, head- and tailpieces. Modern drab paper wrappers. Ms. ownership inscription to t-p of Constantinus Nüssler 1663. T-p and one or two leaves with light spotting, small ink burn to four ll. slightly affecting running title, a very good copy.
Rare first edition of this explanation of various phenomena in nature through the principles of fermentation. This extends beyond simply the fermentation of alcohol, which is included here – with a chapter on the natural proclivity of man for fermenting spiritous liquors – to include the formation of precious stones (in comparison with hen’s eggs), meteorological phenomena, and zoological matter. Ferguson writes: ‘Chapter 22, which contains a discussion on the cause of the conversion of wine into vinegar, deserves notice as illustrating the struggle to find a reason for a phenomenon without any experimental facts or trials to go upon. This work is not referred to anywhere, and I have found nothing about the writer of it’ (Ferguson II, pp. 565-566).
Ziegler is particularly interested in insects and reptiles because of their generation in eggs, which he conceives of as a kind of process of fermentation, just as the generation of vapours through heat leads to certain weather conditions. Ziegler is also interested in the movement of vapours as an explanation for tides, glacial conditions in his native Switzerland, steam, and even earthquakes. However, just as fermentation leads to generation of life and weather, it also breeds corruption, and there are medical chapters here concerning the generation of fevers, the plague (which Ziegler sees as a poison that can be cured with drugs), and pulmonary, circulatory and hepatic conditions.
The etching to the verso of the title-page depicts a variety of insects – scorpions, spiders, grasshoppers – reptiles, amphibians, and also mammals (a rat and, curiously, a mole). There are maps depicting a geocentric universe, a fine world map and a depiction of the Arctic and Antarctic poles, with ships circumnavigating the globe. The wonderful illustrations of Ziegler’s theories also function as emblems and are accompanied by emblematical interpretations in Latin. They include a giant viper about to consume a goat and a ship on fire, having been struck by lightning.
This book apparently belonged to a contemporary student of natural philosophy from Bad Hersfeld (‘Catto-Hersfeldensis’), who signs off ‘Inservio Audiis Physicis’, i.e. ‘I am devoted to the study of natural philosophy.’
Ferguson II, p. 565. BM STC Germ. IV, Z190. Not in Bitting or Vicaire. Not in Osler or Heirs of Hippocrates. OCLC notes copies only at Brown and USC in the USA.In stock
