Book Details + Condition: William Huges, Islington Green (London). Very scarce First (English) Edition, 1828. Flexible hardcover boards measuring 7.5" x 4.75". 224 pages. Firm binding; rubbed corners and edges; aging and wear to original boards; interior is clean save owner's name and number on inside front board, and name on title page. Please note: this appears to be an editing or preliminary edition, due to the plain boards and editing notation in the Preface (see picture). James Wilson's English translation of Greek scholar Claudius Ptolemy's 2nd-century treatise on astrology, from the copy belonging to Renaissance-era theologian Leo Allatius. Full title reads: "The Tetrabiblos; or, Quadripartite of Ptolemy being Four Books, Relative to the Starry Influences." Includes astrological tables, charts, and overview of Chaldean terms, signs, and planets. "Ptolemy wrote an astrological treatise, in four parts, known by the Greek term Tetrabiblos. Its original title is unknown, but may have been a term found in some Greek manuscripts, Apotelesmatiká (biblía), roughly meaning '(books) on the Effects' or 'Outcomes', or 'Prognostics'. As a source of reference, the Tetrabiblos is said to have 'enjoyed almost the authority of a Bible among the astrological writers of a thousand years or more'. Much of the content of the Tetrabiblos was collected from earlier sources; Ptolemy's achievement was to order his material in a systematic way, showing how the subject could, in his view, be rationalized. It is presented as the second part of the study of astronomy of which the Almagest was the first, concerned with the influences of the celestial bodies. Thus explanations are provided for the astrological effects of the planets, based upon their combined effects of heating, cooling, moistening, and drying. Ptolemy dismisses other astrological practices, such as considering the numerological significance of names, that he believed to be without sound basis, and leaves out popular topics, such as electional astrology and medical astrology. The great popularity that the Tetrabiblos did possess might be attributed to its nature as an exposition of the art of astrology, and as a compendium of astrological lore, rather than as a manual. It speaks in general terms, avoiding illustrations and details of practice." [Wikipedia]
