Maria Clara Eimmart (27 May 1676 – 29 October 1707), was a German
astronomer
An astronomer is a scientist in the field of astronomy who focuses their studies on a specific question or field outside the scope of Earth. They observe astronomical objects such as stars, planets, natural satellite, moons, comets and galaxy, g ...
,
engraver and designer. She was the daughter and assistant of
Georg Christoph Eimmart
Georg Christoph Eimmart the Younger (22 August 1638, Regensburg – 5 January 1705, Nürnberg) was a German draughtsman and engraver.
Biography
Eimmart was instructed by his father, Georg Christoph Eimart the Elder (1603-1658), who was also an e ...
the Younger.
Biography
Maria Clara Eimmart was a German astronomer born in
Nuremberg
Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...
.
She was the daughter of painter,
engraver, and amateur
astronomer
An astronomer is a scientist in the field of astronomy who focuses their studies on a specific question or field outside the scope of Earth. They observe astronomical objects such as stars, planets, natural satellite, moons, comets and galaxy, g ...
Georg Christoph Eimmart
Georg Christoph Eimmart the Younger (22 August 1638, Regensburg – 5 January 1705, Nürnberg) was a German draughtsman and engraver.
Biography
Eimmart was instructed by his father, Georg Christoph Eimart the Elder (1603-1658), who was also an e ...
the Younger, who was also director of the Nuremberg Academy of Art, the Malerakademie, from 1699 to 1704.
Her grandfather, Georg Christoph Eimmart the Elder, was also an
engraver and painter of
portraits
A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expressions are predominant. The intent is to display the likeness, personality, and even the mood of the person. For this re ...
,
still-lifes
A still life (plural: still lifes) is a work of art depicting mostly inanimate subject matter, typically commonplace objects which are either natural (food, flowers, dead animals, plants, rocks, shells, etc.) or man-made (drinking glasses, book ...
,
landscapes
A landscape is the visible features of an area of Terrestrial ecoregion, land, its landforms, and how they integrate with Nature, natural or man-made features, often considered in terms of their aesthetic appeal.''New Oxford American Dictionar ...
, and historical subjects.
The profession of Maria Clara Eimmart’s father was lucrative, but he spent all of his earnings in the purchase of astronomical instruments and on building (in 1678) a private
observatory
An observatory is a location used for observing terrestrial, marine, or celestial events. Astronomy, climatology/meteorology, geophysical, oceanography and volcanology are examples of disciplines for which observatories have been constructed. His ...
on the Nuremberg city wall.
He was a diligent observer and published his results in various memoirs and scientific transactions.
Because of the strength of the crafts tradition in Germany, Maria Clara Eimmart was able to take advantage of the opportunity to train as an
apprentice
Apprenticeship is a system for training a new generation of practitioners of a trade or profession with on-the-job training and often some accompanying study (classroom work and reading). Apprenticeships can also enable practitioners to gain a ...
to her father.
Through him, she received a broad education in French, Latin,
mathematics
Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...
, astronomy, drawing, and engraving. Her skills as an
engraver allowed her to assist her father in his work, and she became known for her depictions of the phases of the moon.
In addition, she illustrated flowers, birds, and classical subjects, but most of these paintings have been lost.
In 1706, Eimmart married Johann Heinrich Muller (1671-1731), her father’s pupil and successor, who had become director of the Eimmart observatory in 1705.
Muller also taught physics at the Nuremberg Gymnasium, where Eimmart assisted her husband. Muller was so influenced by the family love for astronomy that he became a diligent amateur and afterwards a professor at
Altorf
Altorf (; german: Altdorf; gsw-FR, Àldorf) is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in the Grand Est region of northeastern France.
The inhabitants of the commune are known as ''Altorfois'' or ''Altorfoises''.
The commune has been awarded one ...
, where he used his skill in depicting comets, sun-spots, and lunar mountains aided by Maria Clara. In the early years of their marriage, their associates included the two
Rost Brothers, who were novelists and astronomers, and
Doppelmayer, a historian of astronomy. In 2012 Markus Heinz of the
Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin
This is a list of the state libraries (german: Landesbibliothek) for each of the Länder of the Federal Republic of Germany. These libraries hold the right for legal deposit for the publications in their respective state.
Landesbibliothek
S ...
discovered two paintings by her of a total solar eclipse that was seen in
Nuremberg
Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...
in 1706. These were known to have existed but were also thought lost. These paintings are in excellent agreement with text descriptions of the event and are now of considerable scientific importance, being a unique depiction by a trained astronomer of the solar corona during the
Maunder minimum.
Just a year after her marriage, Maria Clara Eimmart died in childbirth in Nuremberg.
Astronomical illustrations
Eimmart is best known for her exact
astronomical
Astronomy () is a natural science that studies celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and evolution. Objects of interest include planets, moons, stars, nebulae, galaxies ...
illustrations done in pale pastels on dark blue cardboard. Between 1693 and 1698, Eimmart made over 350 drawings of the phases of the moon.
This collection of drawings, drawn solely from observations through a
telescope
A telescope is a device used to observe distant objects by their emission, absorption, or reflection of electromagnetic radiation. Originally meaning only an optical instrument using lenses, curved mirrors, or a combination of both to observe ...
, was entitled ''Micrographia stellarum phases lunae ultra 300.'' Twelve of these were given to
Luigi Ferdinando Marsili
Count (nobility), Count Luigi Ferdinando Marsili (or Marsigli, Latin, Lat. ''Marsilius''; 10 July 1658 – 1 November 1730) was an Italian scholar and eminent natural scientist, who also served as an emissary and soldier.
Biography
Born in ...
, a scientific collaborator of her father's, and ten survive in
Bologna
Bologna (, , ; egl, label= Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nat ...
, together with three smaller studies on brown paper.
Eimmart’s continuous series of depictions became the basis for a new lunar map.
In 1706, Eimmart made two illustrations of the total
eclipse
An eclipse is an astronomical event that occurs when an astronomical object or spacecraft is temporarily obscured, by passing into the shadow of another body or by having another body pass between it and the viewer. This alignment of three ce ...
at
Nuremberg
Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...
. There are also some drawings of planets and comets.
Schiebinger states that some sources claim Eimmart published a work under her father’s name in 1701, the ''Ichnographia nova contemplationum de sole''. However, there is no evidence to support that this was her work and not her father’s.
Gallery
File:Phase of the Moon Observed.jpg, Phase of the Moon observed
File:Second Phase of the Moon Observed.jpg, Second Phase of the Moon
File:Maria Clara Eimmart.jpg, Illustration of the full Moon
File:Phase of Mercury Observed by Johannes Hevelius.jpg, Phase of Mercury Observed by Johannes Hevelius
File:Phase of Venus.jpg, Phase of Venus
File:Aspect of Mars.jpg, Aspect of Mars
File:Aspect of Jupiter.jpg, Aspect of Jupiter
File:Aspect of Saturn.jpg, Aspect of Saturn
File:Comets.jpg, Comets
File:Paraselene and Parhelion.jpg, Paraselene and Parhelion
File:Maria Clara Eimmart's Painting.jpg, Astronomical illustrations
See also
*
Timeline of women in science
This is a timeline of women in science, spanning from ancient history up to the 21st century. While the timeline primarily focuses on women involved with natural sciences such as astronomy, biology, chemistry and physics, it also includes women f ...
Notes
Literature
* Hans Gaab: ''Zum 300. Todestag von Maria Clara Eimmart (1676–1707).'' In: ''Regiomontanusbote.'' 20, 4/2007, S. 7–19.
* Hans Gaab: ''Maria Clara Eimmart. Eine Nürnberger Astronomin.'' In: Nadja Bennewitz, Gaby Franger: ''Geschichte der Frauen in Mittelfranken. Alltag, Personen und Orte.'' Ars vivendi, Cadolzburg 2003, S. 145–152.
* Ronald Stoyan: ''Die Nürnberger Mondkarten.'' Teil 1: ''Die Mondkarte von Georg Christoph Eimmart (1638–1705) und Maria Clara Eimmart (1676–1707).'' In: ''Regiomontanusbote.'' 14, 1/2001, S. 29–39.
*
*
*Adolf Wißner (1959), "Georg Christoph Eimmart", Neue Deutsche Biographie (NDB) (in German) (Berlin: Duncker & Humblot) 4: 394–394, (full text online)
External links
Astronomical Illustrations by Maria Clara EimmartMaria Clara Eimmart at Astronomie in NürnbergGeorg Christoph Eimmart at Astronomie in NürnbergDrawing of a Vestalin by Maria Clara Eimmart Germanischen Nationalmuseum Nürnberg
{{DEFAULTSORT:Eimmart, Maria Clara
1676 births
1707 deaths
17th-century German astronomers
German engravers
Scientists from Nuremberg
Women astronomers
17th-century German women scientists
18th-century German women scientists
18th-century German astronomers
Deaths in childbirth