Two Glass Containers for Scientific Experiments with Liquids (Illustrations for "Saggi di naturali esperienze") 1666

This drawing of glass containers for scientific experiments was made in Italy as illustrations for "Saggi di naturali esperienze." These drawings are from the 17th century, when scientific societies like the Accademia del Cimento, for whom this was made, were changing the way that science was done. Experimentation became much more important, as did collaboration and the sharing of information. This was a shift away from individual scholars working in isolation, and toward building scientific knowledge as a collective project. The illustrations were to accompany descriptions of the experiments so that other scientists could replicate them. These images give us insight into the intellectual life of seventeenth-century Italy, and also into the patronage networks that supported scientific research. By studying the publications and records of the Accademia del Cimento, we can learn more about the social and institutional history of early modern science.