Vincent Placcius (1642-1699) was a German writer, professor, jurist and polymath.
Life
He was born in 1642 and died in 1699.
He was a professor of ''morals and eloquence'' for twenty-four years.
Works
He is chiefly remembered for his work "The Art of Excerpting" which in its day could be considered to be a precursor to the computer hard disk.
Several of his works have been auctioned for large sums by Christie's.
Excerpts
John Gorton's General Biographical Dictionary
The General Biographical Dictionary is a book by British author John Gorton. The first edition was published in two volumes in 1828, with an appendix. A new edition that brought the work current as far as 1850 was published in four volumes in 1 ...
provides the following information about Vincent Placcius:
''Vincent Placcius, a learned jurist, was born at
Hamburg
(male), (female) en, Hamburger(s),
Hamburgian(s)
, timezone1 = Central (CET)
, utc_offset1 = +1
, timezone1_DST = Central (CEST)
, utc_offset1_DST = +2
, postal ...
in 1642. He studied at
Helmstadt
Helmstadt is a municipality in the Lower Franconian district of Würzburg in Bavaria in Germany.
Geography
Municipal structure
Helmstadt consists of two districts:
* Helmstadt
* Holzkirchhausen
Neighboring municipalities
* Holzkirchen ...
, and after travelling in
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
and
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
, he returned to his native city, where he practiced at the bar, and was appointed professor of morals and eloquence, which post he held until his death in 1699. His principal work is a curious bibliographical piece respecting anonymous and pseudonymous writers, entitled "De Scriptis et Scriptoribus anonymis atque pseudonymis Syntagma".''
Alexander Chalmers' General Biographical Dictionary
The ''General Biographical Dictionary'' was a bestselling book of the early 19th century, compiled by British author Alexander Chalmers. It is the work on which Chalmers' fame as a biographer mainly rests.
Background
The ''Dictionary'' was an enl ...
provides the following information about Vincent Placcius:
''Vincent Placcius was an eminent philologer of Hamburgh, where he was born in 1642, completed his studies at Helmstadt and Leipzig, and improved his talents by travelling in France and Italy. When he returned, he applied himself to the bar, and afterwards became professor of morals and eloquence, in which situation he continued twenty-four years. He was beloved by his pupils, and when he died, April 6, 1699, regretted by his countrymen in general, who had considered him as an oracle. His works are, 1. “A Dictionary of anonymous and pseudonymous Authors,” published in 1708, in 2 vols. folio, by the care of
Fabricius a curious work, but abounding with faults, 2. “De jurisconsulto perito Liber,” 1693, 8vo. 3. “Carmina juvenilia,” Amst. 1667, 12mo. 4. “De arte excerpendi,” Hamburgh, 1689, 8vo, with several others, all testifying, and abundantly proving, his talents and erudition.''
References
External links
Wikisource-Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie
{{DEFAULTSORT:Placcius, Vincent
1642 births
1699 deaths
German non-fiction writers
Jurists from Hamburg
German male non-fiction writers