Topic(s)
Editions of works by Euclid.
Extent
Ca. 500 items.
Scope and content
This is an important collection of the works of the mathematician Euclid. The collection contains 83 editions by Euclid printed before 1640, including the editio princeps published by Erhard Ratdolt at Venice in 1482. Of the many translations the most notable are the first into any modern language, the Italian of 1543, as well as the first German (1562), the first French translation (1564), John Day's edition of the first English translation with John Dee's preface of 1570, the first edition in Arabic (1594), as well as later translations into Turkish, Chinese, Persian, Hebrew, Finnish and other languages. In addition, the collection includes a wide variety of post-1850 editions and translations.
History
The bulk of the collection is part of the Graves Library. The remainder has been built up through donations from various sources and the transfer of material from UCL general collections.
Access
The collection is fully catalogued. To browse the records, conduct a search for EUCLIDCOLLECTION, without spaces, on Explore.
The Euclid Collection is digitised in the Stravros Niarchos Digital Library as part of our digital resources.
Image: Euclid, Elementa (INCUNABULA QUARTO 5q)