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Leipzig, 1721. 4to. Both entire volumes (Acta Eruditorum 1721 + Supplementa VII, 1721) present, in uniform contemporary full vellum bindings with handwriting to spines. A small later label to top of spines. Old handwritten ex libris-inscription to top of both title-pages as well as a small stamp. The supplement-volume with an additional stamp to title-page, and both volumes with library label (Archiv des k.k. militär.-geograf Institutes) to pasted down front free end-paper. As usual some brownspotting. A nice set. pp. 500-514 (Supplement-vol.) + pp. 94-95. [Entire volumes: (2), 537, (39) pp. + three plates (Suppl.-vol.) + (4), 547, (42) pp. + five plates]. The highly important first Latin translation of Leibnitz' seminal "The Monadology" - his main philosophical work and the work that stands as the epitomization of anti-materialism - which was not published in the original French until 1814, and which only appeared in a German translation (exceedingly scarce) in 1720 and in a Latin translation, by Christian Wolff, in 1721, as it is here. Up until then, Leibnitz' key philosophical text had only circulated in manuscript form (written in 1714). - Here sold together with Wolff's anonymously written review of (the German version of the) "Monadology", which had great impact upon the reception of the seminal philosophical text that is the "Monadology"."Until the XXth century, criticism about Leibniz's "Principles of Nature and Grace" and "Monadology" has been characterised by a number of mistakes and misunderstandings, which have roots in the circumstances surrounding the genesis of these manuscripts. As a consequence, erroneous information about these texts was included in an anonymous review, published in 1721 in the "Acta eruditorum" of Leipzig. Research on primary sources proves that the author of this review (who was in fact the author of the latin translation of the Monadology, published immediately afterwards) was Christian Wolff, who was in possession of a copy of Leibniz's manuscript as early as 1717. Wolff's initiative of translating the Monadology can be seen as part of a cultural strategy aiming to prevent any idealistic interpretation of Leibniz's monadological thought. From this point of view, to consider the theory of pre-established harmony as based on a system of strictly dualistic metaphysics was an essential element of Wolff's philosophical strategy."(Antonio Lamarra: Contexte génétique et première reception de la "Monadologie". Leibniz, Wolff et la doctrine de l'harmonie préétablie"). During his last stay in Vienna from 1712 to September 1714, Leibniz wrote two short texts, which were meant as concise expositions of his philosophy, namely the "Principes de la Nature et de la Grace fondés en raison" (written as a letter to Prince Eugene of Savoy) and the work we now know as the "Monadology" (which he had been asked to write by Nicolas Redmond, Duke of Orleons) - the latter being the work that established Leibnitz' fame as a philosopher and which has gone down in history as, not only as one of the most important philosophical texts of the 18th century, but also, arguably the most important work of immaterialism. After his death "Principes de la Nature et de la Grace fondés en raison" appeared in French in the Netherlands. Without having seen this publication, Christian Wolff and collaborators had assumed that it contained the French original of the "Monadology" as well, although this in fact remained unpublished until 1840. Thus it happened that Leibnitz' key philosophical text, which came to be known as "The Monadology", was printed in German and Latin ab. 120 years before it appeared in the original French. The German translation appeared in 1720 as "Lehrsätze über die Monadologie" and the following year the Latin translation appeared, in Acta Eruditorum, as "Principia philosophiae". Three manuscript versions of the text exist: the first written by Leibniz and overcharged with corrections and two further emended c.
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