Anthemius of Tralles
Anthemius of Tralles (
Life
Anthemius was one of the five sons of Stephanus of Tralles, a physician. His brothers were Dioscorus, Alexander, Olympius, and Metrodorus. Dioscorus followed his father's profession in Tralles; Alexander did so in
Anthemius was said to have annoyed his neighbor Zeno in two ways: first, by engineering a miniature earthquake by sending steam through leather tubes he had fixed among the joists and flooring of Zeno's parlor while he was entertaining friends[4] and, second, by simulating thunder and lightning and flashing intolerable light into Zeno's eyes from a slightly hollowed mirror.[3] In addition to his familiarity with steam, some dubious authorities credited Anthemius with a knowledge of gunpowder or other explosive compound.[3]
Mathematics
Anthemius was a capable
Eutocius of Ascalon's commentary on Apollonius's Conics was dedicated to Anthemius.[1]
Architecture
As an architect, Anthemius is best known for his work designing the Hagia Sophia.[3] He was commissioned with Isidore of Miletus by Justinian I shortly after the earlier church on the site burned down in 532 but died early on in the project. He is also said to have repaired the flood defenses at Daras.[5]
Editions of On Burning-Glasses
- Dupuy, L. (1777), Περί παραδόξων μηχανημάτων [Perí Paradóxōn Mēkhanēmátōn; Concerning Wondrous Machines] (in Greek)
- Histoire de l'Academie des Instrumentistes (in French), vol. XLII
- Westermann, A. (1839), Παραδοξογράφοι [Paradoxográphoi; Marvel-Writers] (in Greek)
Notes
- ^ a b c
ISBN 0-471-54397-7.
- ^ Heath 1911, p. 98: "ANTHEMIUS, Greek mathematician and architect, who produced, under the patronage of Justinian (A.D. 532), the original and daring plans for the church of St Sophia in Constantinople, ... He was one of five brothers—the sons of Stephanus, a physician of Tralles—who were all more or less eminent in their respective departments. ..."
- ^ a b c d e Heath 1911, p. 98.
- ISBN 978-3-11-082694-4.
- ^ O'Connor & Robertson 1999.
References
- Heath, Thomas Little (1911), , in Chisholm, Hugh (ed.), Encyclopædia Britannica, vol. 2 (11th ed.), Cambridge University Press, p. 93
- Huxley, G. L. (1959), Anthemius of Tralles: A Study in Later Greek Geometry, Cambridge, MA, pp. 8–9, )
- Huxley, G. L. (1970), "Anthemius of Tralles", in Gillispie, Charles Coulston (ed.), Dictionary of Scientific Biography, vol. 1 (Abailard–Berg), New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, pp. 169–170.
- Knorr, Wilbur (1983). "The Geometry of Burning-Mirrors in Antiquity". Isis. 74 (1): 53–73. JSTOR 232280.
- O'Connor, John J.; Robertson, Edmund F. (1999), "Anthemius of Tralles", MacTutor History of Mathematics Archive, University of St Andrews
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Academics | |
| Artists | |
| People | |
| Other | |
