The Lord of Uraniborg: A Biography of Tycho Brahe

by Victor E. Thoren, John Robert Christianson (Contributor)

The Lord of Uraniborg is a comprehensive biography of Tycho Brahe, father of modern astronomy, famed alchemist and littérateur of the sixteenth-century Danish Renaissance. Written in a lively and engaging style, Victor Thoren's biography offers interesting perspectives on Tycho's life and presents alternative analyses of virtually every aspect of his scientific work. A range of readers interested in astronomy, history of astronomy and the history of science will find this book fascinating.

Genres: Astronomy, Biography, Science, History, History Of Science, Nonfiction

536 pages, Hardcover

First published April 26, 1991

About the author

Victor E. Thoren was a professor in the department of the history and philosophy of science at Indiana University.
He was one of the world's foremost historians of astronomy and the preeminent authority on the life and work of the great Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe (1546-1601).

Reviews

[Wendelle]

This is the dense, authoritative biography of Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe, the last great astronomer of the pre-telescope era. He helped revolutionize and modernize astronomy through his discovery, spotting and analysis of a new supernova in Cassiopeia constellation, and a new comet, revealing at last the error at the heart of the Aristotelian premise about the unchangeability of the celestial sphere. This book talks a lot about Uraniborg, his palatial estate for the center of scientific learning that attracted a lot of students, recruited a lot of artisans, and took the labor and levy of peasant farmers. It's a lushly detailed book that covered more mentions of armillaries, quadrants, and sextants than I have previously seen in life.

[Truls Ljungström · Rating 2 out of 5]

Tycho Brahe var en spännande person, och hans liv beskrivs utförligt i denna biografi. Den är mycket vetenskapligt orienterad, men kanske lite torr. Personen Tycho får stå tillbaka för teoretikern. Om det är vad man är ute efter, så är det en utmärkt bok.

[Maggie Lieu · Rating 3 out of 5]

interesting life, wish it delved deeper into the intriguing parts