Encyclopedia of Early Modern History Online

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Space
(3,834 words)

1. Theology and philosophy

1.1. To 1700

Between the 14th and 17th centuries, space changed from a finite, articulated construct to an infinite, uniform, and rational construct. In the cosmology of Plato and Aristotle, spherical closure was an expression of the perfection of the cosmos, but ever since Nicholas of Cusa in the 15th century and Giordano Bruno in the 16th century, unlimited or infinite space was considered a perfect image or emanation of the infinity of God [11]. …

Cite this page
Beuttler, Ulrich, Pulte, Helmut and Gierl, Martin, “Space”, in: Encyclopedia of Early Modern History Online, Editors of the English edition: Graeme Dunphy, Andrew Gow. Original German Edition: Enzyklopädie der Neuzeit. Im Auftrag des Kulturwissenschaftlichen Instituts (Essen) und in Verbindung mit den Fachherausgebern herausgegeben von Friedrich Jaeger. Copyright © J.B. Metzlersche Verlagsbuchhandlung und Carl Ernst Poeschel Verlag GmbH 2005–2012. Consulted online on 28 September 2023 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/2352-0272_emho_COM_026172>
First published online: 2015
First print edition: 20180208



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