Linda Hall Library Hosts Rare Book Exhibition Featuring Original 17th Century works from Galileo and Kepler

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas City's Linda Hall Library has acquired a third copy of Galileo’s “Sidereus nuncius”, bound with two other works from Johannes Kepler. The 1610 Venice edition of Galileo's "Sidereus nuncius" and the two Kepler titles will be on display at the Library in an all-new exhibition alongside seventeen other new acquisitions to the Library's rare book collection beginning July 25, 2024.

Galileo's most famous work, "Sidereus nuncius," or "Starry Messenger" in English, was printed in 1610 in Venice on both ordinary and fine paper. It was also published in Frankfurt, Germany on ordinary paper. The newly acquired ordinary paper version published in Venice is a sammelband with Kepler's "Narratio do observatis" and "Dioptrice," and it features corrections in Galileo's handwriting. The publication also bears evidence of being folded and sent through diplomatic mail, suggesting Galileo himself took the time to personally send the publication as quickly as possible to a still-unidentified recipient in the early 17th century. Following the acquisition, the Linda Hall Library is the only institution in the world with all three “versions” of the publication.

Galileo Galilei is one of the most influential scientists in history, commonly called the father of modern science. He published his findings in astronomy, physics and engineering in the late 1500s and early 1600s. Johannes Kepler, an astronomer and mathematician working in the same period as Galileo, was responsible for the laws of planetary motion, which describe the orbits of the planets around the sun. He also made improvements to the telescope of the era, creating the first light-refracting telescope which would become the foundation of the modern refracting telescope.

"Galileo and Kepler are two of the most influential astronomers in history and are responsible for advancing how we understand our solar system and our universe," said Jason W. Dean, Vice President for Special Collections and Public Services at Linda Hall Library. "It is an honor to host such an extraordinary collection of human exploration right here in Kansas City and learn directly from their original texts and notes." 

The Linda Hall Library offers unparalleled access to publications in its collection through description and digitization. Digitized copies of the other two versions of "Sidereus nuncius" are already freely available in the Library's digital catalog.

To investigate and shed new scholarly light on the copy of "Sidereus nuncius" with Galileo's hand-written corrections, the Library hosted Nick Wilding, Ph.D, a leading expert on the printed works of Galileo, and Paul Needham, Ph.D, Scheide Librarian Emeritus at Princeton University, to closely examine the copy. This initial visit laid the foundation for a revision of Needham's work in "Galileo Makes a Book" and demonstrated the value and importance of this unique gathering of three "Siderei nuncii" in the same collection.

Now, the Library invites the public to view its impressive collection of rare historic books for themselves. The newly acquired works of Galileo and Kepler, along with the Library's additional recent rare book acquisitions, will be on display at the Linda Hall Library in an all-new exhibition beginning July 25, 2024, located at 5109 Cherry Street in Kansas City, Missouri. The Library is open to the public Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.

About the Linda Hall Library

Since 1946, the Linda Hall Library has been amassing collections that have powered investigation, innovation, exploration and inspiration. Today, the Library is a leading independent research library widely known for the breadth and depth of its collections across 82 languages, its role as an international destination for scholarship and research, its support of teachers of the STEM curricula, and the vast resources it provides to learners of all ages interested in scientific exploration and discovery. Learn more at lindahall.org.