Petrus Camper in context

'A meteor of spirit, science, talent and activity' - thus Goethe described Petrus Camper (1722-1789). Goethe's words contain all the elements that make Camper such a fascinating figure in the history of science and arts in the eighteenth-century Dutch Republic. This volume sheds new light on Camper's versatility, engagement, and charisma in all fields and disciplines he ventured into and published on. It not only addresses his scientific activities, findings, and opinions, but also delves into his career at the universities of Franeker, Amsterdam, and Groningen, his travels, relationships, friendships, and feuds, as well as the ways he communicated his wide-ranging research. Eleven case studies illustrate Camper's views on eighteenth-century life and society, which motivated not just his scientific, but also his political, societal, literary, and artistic practice. Together they amount to a plea for an integration of all aspects of his scholarly life and persona.

Contents: KLAAS VAN BERKEL/MART VAN LIEBURG/BART RAMAKERS, Introduction KLAAS VAN Berkel, The Right Man at the Right Place: Petrus Camper and the Restauration of the University of Groningen in the Eighteenth Century PIETER CALJÉ, Petrus Camper and the Demise of the Franeker Academy GOFFE JENSMA, 'Aut Bene, aut Non': Petrus Camper as a Frisian Regent JACOB VAN SLUIS, Mutual affairs: Petrus Camper as Seen by His Friend François Hemsterhuis REINDHARD HILDEBRAND, Petrus Camper in His Relationship to Samuel Thomas Soemmerring and Other German Scientists of the Goethe-Zeit MIRIAM CLAUDE MEIJER, Bones, Law and Order, in Amsterdam ANFREW CUNNINGHAM, Petrus Camper: A Dutchman in the Medical World of Eighteenth Century England MART VAN LIEBURG, Petrus Camper, the Medical Professions and the Anatomic Concept of Manual Practice FREEK SCHMIDT, Petrus Camper and his Passion for Architecture WESSEL KRUL, Between Idea land Experience: Petrus Camper and the Esthetics of Neo-Classicism PAUL VAN DE AKKER, Petrus Camper on Natural Design and the Beauty of Apollo's Profile BART RAMAKERS, 'To Be Read Tastefully and Fruitfully': Petrus Camper as a Popularizor of Science Bibliography Index