Bartholomew of Parma (Latin: Bartolomeus de Parma) was the first recorded
lecturer
Lecturer is an List of academic ranks, academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. T ...
on astronomy at the
University of Bologna
The University of Bologna ( it, Alma Mater Studiorum – Università di Bologna, UNIBO) is a public research university in Bologna, Italy. Founded in 1088 by an organised guild of students (''studiorum''), it is the oldest university in continuo ...
, active in the 1280s and 1290s. He was the author of a ''Tractatus spherae'' (Treatise of the Spheres), and acquired a reputation as an
astrologer
Astrology is a range of divinatory practices, recognized as pseudoscientific since the 18th century, that claim to discern information about human affairs and terrestrial events by studying the apparent positions of celestial objects. Dif ...
and
geomancer.
Geomancy, one of his main interests, he described as the practical side or ‘little daughter’ of the art of astrology, and also as ‚another astrology‘: ‚Note that in this art every point is deposited according to a star of the heavens. Every figure is deposited according to a certain
element in the order of the four elements. Similarly every figure is deposited according to the sign of the star among the twelve signs of the heavens, a planet and the part of the world, which are 4: east, west, south and north. Geomancy is nothing other than ‘another astrology’ (altra astrologia.')
Of Astrology, considered an "art" in 13th century Italy, feudal princes wanted to know their civic "fortune". Works by astrologers such as Bartholomew of Parma's ''Treatise of the Spheres'' were considered invaluable as they described how the information gained from celestial movement could be interpreted to guide civic leaders and maintain governance over the Italian city states.)
[Baiada Enrica: (1988) "Il Museo della Specola e l'astronomia a Bologna", in ''Storia Illustrata di Bologna'', vol VII, AIEP, pp. 161-180.]
References
13th-century Italian astronomers
13th-century writers in Latin
13th-century Italian writers
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