Apianus on an 18th century engraving

Petrus Apianus (April 16, 1495 – April 21, 1552; also known as Peter Apian) was a German humanist, famous for his works in mathematics, astronomy and cartography. Image File history File links Peter_Apian. ... Image File history File links Peter_Apian. ... April 16 is the 106th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (107th in leap years). ... 1495 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... April 21 is the 111th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (112th in leap years). ... Events April - War between Henry II of France and Emperor Charles V. Henry invades Lorraine and captures Toul, Metz, and Verdun. ... Humanism is a broad category of active ethical philosophies that affirm the dignity and worth of all people, based on our ability to determine what is right using the qualities innate to humanity, particularly rationality. ... Mathematics is often defined as the study of topics such as quantity, structure, space, and change. ... Astrology: the study of the positions of the celestial objects relative to the Earth and how these positions affect happenings on the lives of cultures, nations and the natural environment. ... Cartography or mapmaking (in Greek chartis = map and graphein = write) is the study and practice of making maps or globes. ...

Life and work

He was born as Peter Bienewitz (or Bennewitz) in Leisnig in Saxony; his father was a shoemaker. The family was relatively well off, belonging to the middle-class citizenry of Leisnig. Apianus was educated at the Latin school in Rochlitz. From 1516 to 1519 he studied at the University of Leipzig; during this time, he latinized his name to Apianus (lat. apis means "bee"; "Biene" is the German word for bee). Leisnig is a small town in the district of Döbeln, federal state of Saxony in Germany. ... With an area of 18,413 km² and a population of 4. ... Shoemaking is a traditional career/craft, mostly superseded by industrial manufacture of footwear. ... // Events March - With the death of Ferdinand II of Aragon, his grandson Charles of Ghent becomes King of Spain as Carlos I. July - Selim I of the Ottoman Empire declares war on the Mameluks and invades Syria. ... Events March 4 - Hernán Cortés lands in Mexico. ... The University of Leipzig (Universität Leipzig), located in Leipzig in the Free State and former Kingdom of Saxony, is one of the oldest universities in Europe. ...

In 1519, Apianus moved to Vienna and continued his studies at the University of Vienna, which was considered one of the leading universities in geography and mathematics at the time and where Georg Tannstetter taught. When the plague broke out in Vienna in 1521, he completed his studies with a B.A. and moved to Regensburg and then to Landshut. Events March 4 - Hernán Cortés lands in Mexico. ... Vienna (German: Wien [viːn]; Slovenian: Dunaj, Hungarian: Bécs, Czech: Vídeň, Slovak: Viedeň, Romany Vidnya; Croatian and Serbian: Beč) is the capital of Austria, and also one of the nine States of Austria. ... University of Vienna, main building, seen from Beethovens apartment The University of Vienna (German: Universität Wien) in Austria was founded in 1365 by Rudolph IV and hence named Alma mater Rudolphina. ... Portrait ca. ... Doctor Schnabel von Rom (English: Doctor Beak of Rome) engraving by Paul Fürst (after J Columbina). ... Events January 3 - Pope Leo X excommunicates Martin Luther in the papal bull Decet Romanum Pontificem. ... A Bachelor of Arts (B.A. or A.B.) is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for a course or program in the arts and/or sciences. ... Regensburg (English formerly Ratisbon, Latin Ratisbona, Czech Řezno) is a city (population 150,212 in 2004) in Bavaria, south-east Germany, located at the confluence of the Danube and Regen rivers, at the northernmost bend in the Danube. ... Landshut is a city in Bavaria, Germany, the capital of the Niederbayern region. ...

In Landhut, he produced his Cosmographicus liber (1524), a highly respected work on astronomy and navigation that was to see at least 30 reprints in 14 languages and that remained popular until the end of the 16th century. He married the daughter of a councilman of Landshut, Katharina Mosner, in 1526. They would have 14 children together, five girls and nine sons, one of which was Philipp Apian. Events March 1, 1524/5 - Giovanni da Verrazano lands near Cape Fear (approx. ... Astrology: the study of the positions of the celestial objects relative to the Earth and how these positions affect happenings on the lives of cultures, nations and the natural environment. ... There are several traditions of navigation. ... (15th century - 16th century - 17th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 16th century was that century which lasted from 1501 to 1600. ... Events January 14 - Treaty of Madrid. ...

In 1527, Peter Apian was called to the University of Ingolstadt as a mathematician and printer. His print shop started small. Among the first books he printed were the writings of Johann Eck, Martin Luther's antagonist. Later, his print shop soon became well-known for its high-quality editions of geographic and cartographic works. Events January 5 - Felix Manz, co-founder of the Swiss Anabaptists, was drowned in the Limmat River in Zürich by the Zürich Reformed state church. ... Ingolstadt is a city in the Federal State of Bavaria, Germany. ... This article or section should be merged with Johann Maier Eck Johann Eck (November 13, 1486 – February 13, 1543) was a 16th century theologian and defender of Catholicism during the Protestant Reformation. ... Luther at age 46 (Lucas Cranach the Elder, 1529) The Luther seal Martin Luther (November 10, 1483–February 18, 1546) was a German theologian, an Augustinian monk, and an ecclesiastical reformer whose teachings inspired the Reformation and deeply influenced the doctrines and culture of the Lutheran and Protestant traditions. ...

A page of the Astronomicum Caesareum (1540)

Through his work, Apian became a favourite of emperor Charles V. Charles had praised his work (the Cosmographicus liber) on the Reichstag of 1530 and granted him a printing monopoly in 1532 and 1534. In 1535, the emperor made Apian an armiger, i.e. granted him the right to display a coat of arms. In 1540, Apian printed the Astronomicum Caesareum, dedicated to Charles V. Charles promised him a truly royal sum (3,000 golden guilders)¹, appointed him his court mathematician, and made him a Reichsritter and in 1544 even a Hofpfalzgraf. All this furthered Apian's reputation as an eminent scientist. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (574x883, 160 KB)A page from Petrus Apianus Astronomicum Caesareum (1540). ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (574x883, 160 KB)A page from Petrus Apianus Astronomicum Caesareum (1540). ... The Holy Roman Emperor was, with some variation, the ruler of the Holy Roman Empire, the predecessor of modern Germany, during its existence from the 10th century until its collapse in 1806. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... The Reichstag (German for Imperial Diet) was the parliament of the Holy Roman Empire, the North German Confederation, and of Germany until 1945. ... Events June 25 - Augsburg confession presented to Charles V of Holy Roman Empire. ... Events May 16 - Sir Thomas More resigns as Lord Chancellor of England. ... Events February 27 - Group of Anabaptists of Jan Matthys seize Münster and declare it The New Jerusalem - they begin to exile dissenters and forcible baptize all others May 10 - Jacques Cartier explores Newfoundland while searching for the Northwest Passage. ... Events January 18 - Lima, Peru founded by Francisco Pizarro April - Jacques Cartier discovers the Iroquois city of Stadacona, Canada (now Quebec) and in May, the even greater Huron city of Hochelaga June 24 - The Anabaptist state of Münster (see Münster Rebellion) is conquered and disbanded. ... An armiger is a person entitled to use a coat of arms. ... A modern coat of arms is derived from the medi val practice of painting designs onto the shield and outer clothing of knights to enable them to be identified in battle, and later in tournaments. ... Events January 6 - King Henry VIII of England marries Anne of Cleves, his fourth Queen consort. ... The Gulden originated as a gold coin (hence the name) but has been a common name for a silver or base metal coin for some centuries. ... Events April 11 - Battle of Ceresole - French forces under the Comte dEnghien defeat Imperial forces under the Marques Del Vasto near Turin. ... Graf is a German noble title equal in rank to a count or an earl. ...

Despite many calls from other universities, including Leipzig, Padua, Tübingen, and Vienna, Apian remained in Ingolstadt until his death. Although he neglected his teaching duties, the university evidently was proud to host such an esteemed scientist. Apian's work included in mathematics—in 1527 he published a variation of Pascal's triangle, and in 1534 a table of sines— as well as astronomy. In 1531, he observed a comet and discovered that a comet's tail always point away from the sun. (Girolamo Fracastoro also detected this in 1531, but Apian's publication was the first to also include graphics.) He designed sundials and published manuals for astronomical instruments. Leipzig â–¶(?) [] (Sorbian/Lusatian: Lipsk) is the largest city in the federal state (Bundesland) of Saxony in Germany. ... Location within Italy Tronco Maestro Riviera: a pedestrian walk along a section of the inland waterway or naviglio interno of Padua The city of Padua (Lat. ... Tübingen, Neckar front Tübingen, an old university city of Baden-Württemberg, Germany, is situated 20 miles southwest of Stuttgart, on a ridge between the River Neckar and the Ammer. ... Vienna (German: Wien [viːn]; Slovenian: Dunaj, Hungarian: Bécs, Czech: Vídeň, Slovak: Viedeň, Romany Vidnya; Croatian and Serbian: Beč) is the capital of Austria, and also one of the nine States of Austria. ... Events January 5 - Felix Manz, co-founder of the Swiss Anabaptists, was drowned in the Limmat River in Zürich by the Zürich Reformed state church. ... 1 1 1 1 2 1 1 3 3 1 1 4 6 4 1 1 5 10 10 5 1 The first six rows of Pascals triangle In mathematics, Pascals triangle is a geometric arrangement of the binomial coefficients in a triangle. ... Events February 27 - Group of Anabaptists of Jan Matthys seize Münster and declare it The New Jerusalem - they begin to exile dissenters and forcible baptize all others May 10 - Jacques Cartier explores Newfoundland while searching for the Northwest Passage. ... In mathematics, the trigonometric functions are functions of an angle, important when studying triangles and modeling periodic phenomena. ... Events January 26 - Lisbon, Portugal is hit by an earthquake-- thousands die October 1 - Battle of Kappel - The forces of Zürich are defeated by the Catholic cantons. ... Comet Hale-Bopp A comet (denoted by ☄) is a small body in the solar system that orbits the sun and (at least occasionally) exhibits a coma (or atmosphere) and/or a tail — both due primarily to the effects of solar radiation upon the comets nucleus, which itself is a... Girolamo Fracastoro (Fracastorius) (1478‑1553) was an Italian physician, scholar and poet. ... Wall sundial Wall sundial in Warsaws Old Town A sundial measures time by the position of the sun. ...

Selected works

• Cosmographicus liber, Landshut 1524.
• Ein newe und wolgegründete underweisung aller Kauffmanns Rechnung in dreyen Büchern, mit schönen Regeln und fragstücken begriffen, Ingolstadt 1527. A handbook of commercial arithmetic; depicted in the painting The Ambassadors by Hans Holbein the Younger.
• Ein kurtzer bericht der Observation unnd urtels des jüngst erschinnen Cometen..., Ingolstadt 1532. On his comet observations.
• Quadrans Apiani astronomicus, Ingolstadt 1532. On sextants.
• Horoscopion Apiani..., Ingolstadt 1533. On sundials.
• Instrument Buch..., Ingolstadt 1533. A scientific book on astronomical instruments in German.
• Instrumentum primi mobilis, Nuremberg 1534. On trigonometry, contains sine tables.
• Astronomicum Caesareum, Ingolstadt 1540.

Hans Holbein the Younger (c. ... A sextant is a measuring instrument used to measure the angle of elevation of a celestial object above the horizon. ... Trigonometry (from the Greek trigonon = three angles and metro = measure) is a branch of mathematics dealing with angles, triangles and trigonometric functions such as sine, cosine and tangent. ...

Footnotes

Note 1: Whether Apian ever received the promised money is uncertain; in any case he wrote a letter to the emperor in 1549 asking him to finally pay the promised sum[1]. Events July - Ketts Rebellion Francis Xavier arrives in Japan. ...

References

• Kahl, Ch.: Apian, Peter in Biographisch-Bibliographisches Kirchenlexikon, vol XXIV; Verlag Traugott Bautz, Nordhausen 2005. ISBN 3-883-09247-9. In German.
• Peter and Philipp Apian, in German.

Further reading

• Röttel, K. (Ed.): Peter Apian: Astronomie, Kosmographie und Mathematik am Beginn der Neuzeit, Polygon-Verlag 1995; ISBN 3-928-67112-X. In German.

External links

• Petrus Apianus.
• Astronomicum Caesareum at the library of the ETH Zurich, with images.