The alchemy of medicine and print

The Edward Worth Library, Dublin

Danielle Westerhof, editor

‘The essays range much wider than the life and times of Edward Worth himself … Immersed in the intellectual and philosophical tenets of his age, Worth would no doubt have approved of this volume', Brian Donnelly, Irish Archives (2011).

‘Alchemy, occult arts, philosophy, metaphysics, mountebank quackery, rude surgery, ‘physick’, the ‘Lunar Men’, the ‘New Science’, early modern medicine and print – they are all dealt with in this fascinating and handsome volume of essays … in her erudite Introduction the editor, Danielle Westerhof, sets the context for the essays that, she writes, “paint a complex picture of cultural and intellectual pursuits in early modern Europe”, a reminder that Ireland at this time was not as isolated from the intellectual currents in Europe as is sometimes imagined', Hugh McFadden, Books Ireland (April 2011).

‘Edward Worth (1678–1733), an early eighteenth-century Dublin physician, left his library to Dr Steevens’ Hospital in Dublin and it remains there to this day. Worth’s medical books comprise roughly a third of the overall collection of 4,500 volumes … the book reviewed constitutes the first extended exploration of the Worth Library’s potential for research into the reception of early modern science in Ireland. The book is divided into four parts. The first concentrates on Edward Worth and his milieu, the second on libraries in Ireland of his period, the third on printing and the dissemination of knowledge, and the fourth on health, regimen, and healing knowledge. Parts 1 and 2 are obviously relevant to library history, while Parts 3 and 4 use the Worth books to explore wider features of scientific print culture … this [is a] valuable collection of essays', Peter Murray Jones, Library & Information History (September 2011).

‘[A] fascinating and intriguing volume of essays … from a genealogical perspective this volume should be of interest to those with ancestors in the medical profession, but it is also a very valuable social history', Michael Merrigan, Ireland’s Genealogical Gazette (January 2011).