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Lexicon Technicum, Or, an Universal English Dictionary of Arts and Sciences: Explaining Not Only the Terms of Art but the Arts Themselves
Lexicon Technicum Or an Universal English Dictionary of Arts and Sciences Explaining Not Only the Terms of Art but the Arts Themselves Author:John Harris Harris, John (1667?-1719). Lexicon Technicum, Or, An Universal English Dictionary Of Arts And Sciences Explaining Not Only the Terms of Art But the Arts Themselves. London: Printed for Dan. Brown [and 9 others], 1704-1710. 2 Vols. Octavo (7" x 9"). Illustrated, 4 folding plates; 1 portrait. 1820 pp. Reprinted by The Lawbook Exchange, Ltd. and M... more »artino Publishing, 2006. ISBN-13: 978-1-58477-418-1. ISBN-10: 1-58477-418-5. Cloth. New. * This work holds the distinction of being the first general encyclopedia to emphasize science. Although Harris considered his work a dictionary, it is more than that. As he notes in the subtitle, it is a universal dictionary `Explaining not only the Terms of Art, but the Arts themselves'. Influential, it served as a model for Ephraim Chambers' Cyclopaedia and was named by Denis Diderot in his Prospectus of 1750 as a source for the Encyclopedie. Harris lived during one of the important periods of scientific advancement. An unoriginal thinker himself, he was able to recognize originality in others and to use their works as sources for his Lexicon. Because he relied mostly on the researches of his able contemporaries in the scientific areas and because he consciously sought to describe the `modern' advances, Harris succeeded in compiling the first encyclopedia that was, in general, up to date, comprehensive, and detailed on the subject of science.' Cited in L.E. Bradshaw, in: Frank Kafker, Notable Encyclopedias, Oxford 1981.« less