POMODORO, Giovanni; SCALA, Giovanni.

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Geometria prattica tratta dagl'Elementi d'Euclide et di altri Auttori. First edition of this richly illustrated treatise on applied geometry, structured as a manual for surveyors, geographers, cosmographers, civil and military architects, and "any other virtuous person". The Venetian mathematician Pomodoro had prepared 44 plates before his premature death; Scala took on the task of completing the treatise by adding detailed descriptions and 7 more plates.After the first Italian publication of Euclid's Elements in 1545 in Venice, geometry started to be seen as a powerful tool for measuring reality, and therefore managing and transforming the world. Unlike the numerous purely theoretical treatises of the period, Geometria prattica was aimed at providing methods for solving everyday problems. It "favoured the diffusion of scientific notions and solutions between clients and common people... The good fortune of Pomodoro's treatise is in offering to his contemporaries a work suited to the needs of clients - increasingly numerous and demanding, useful for practical administrative needs, simple in format and smart in contents... Pomodoro's drawings have a peculiar graphical quality, being a smart visual guide for professionals" (Brusaporci, pp. 201-17). The work begins with a presentation of the necessary instruments for drawing and surveying, including different types of compasses, rulers, goniometers, and the "surveyor cross" (a particular measuring tool for surveyors). Pomodoro's

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