Volvelle

The paper analyzes the Cosmographicus liber (1524) of the German mathematician and cosmographer Petrus Apianus: an innovative work in the astronomical, geographical and cartographic studies of the sixteenth century, also due to the presence of some mobile devices consisting of volvelles. In addition to reconstructing the context of mathematical studies in which Apianus operated, the essay describes the para-textual function and the functioning of the astronomical instruments incorporated in the book.

Utopian visions and diagrams have engaged in a multitude of relationships. For example, a utopian narrative can be conceived as a diagram, or with the aid of diagrams, and understood through diagrammatic (re) annotation. This notion is explored through an interpretation of Thomas More’s Utopia and Andrea Branzi’s Agronica. Both schemes address various structural conditions through diagrammatic operations. In More’s scheme the channel that separates Utopia from the mainland, dug by its putative founder King Abraxas, inscribes a circular boundary, reiterated in the city walls and moat; it is resonant with contemporaneous rota and volvelle schemata. Conversely, Andrea Branzi’s “mirror simulator” multiplies Agronica’s centrifugal grid to infinity, negating the “outside,” and is evocative of pervasive virtual networks.

This contribution reconstructs the history of volvelle in movable books; books created for a wide range of different purposes (teaching, mnemonics, play, divining, etc.) including mechanical or paratextual devices demanding or soliciting the interaction of the reader. The investigation runs from handwritten books, considering some specific editorial genres, including calendars, books of fate, anatomical flap books, navigation handbooks etc.

This contribution reconstructs the history of movable books, books created for a wide range of different purposes (teaching, mnemonics, play, divining, etc.) including mechanical or paratextual devices demanding or soliciting the interaction of the reader. The investigation runs from hand-written books to the most courageous paper-engineering experiments of the 20th century Avant-Garde, considering some specific editorial genres, including calendars, “libri di sorti”, anatomical books, navigation handbooks etc., and animated children's books. In particular, it demonstrates how the happy season for animated paper production and publishing of the 19th century would not have been possible without the scientific inheritance of optical studies and vision sciences, precursors a short time before the invention of the Lumière brothers (1895). The study also examines some literary works using combinatorial mechanisms, experimenting the semiotic potential of expressive codes and very different techniques and materials: the reference is to books of Futurism and Dadaism, the "artists' book", and other avant-garde texts from the second half of the 20th century.

Volvelle Inovation adalah instrumen pengembangan dari Volvelle awal buatan Philippe De La Hire (Perancis)  pada abad ke-18 yang digunakan untuk perhitungan gerhana Matahari dan gerhana Bulan dan juga bisa digunakan untuk kalender.

Volvelle diambil dari kata “VOLVELLA ” (bhs. Latin  abad pertengahan) Yang artinya sebuah instrumen yang  tersusun atas 1 atau lebih cakram kertas yang  ditumpuk-tumpuk dan dipasang pada halaman buku dengan pin atau tali yang  memungkinkan setiap disknya diputar-putar secara independen.

Volvelle ini didesign untuk menentukan waktu gerhana baik Matahari atau Bulan serta bisa difungsikan sebagai kalender dengan fitur “Hari dan Pasaran” dan bisa digunakan selama 200 tahun (1900-2100) / lebih.

This contribution reconstructs the history of volvelle in movable books; books created for a wide range of different purposes (teaching, mnemonics, play, divining, etc.) including mechanical or paratextual devices demanding or soliciting the interaction of the reader. The investigation runs from hand-written books, considering some specific editorial genres, including calendars, books of fate, anatomical flap books, navigation handbooks etc.