16th-Century Compass Possibly Belonging to Nicolaus Copernicus Unearthed in Poland
Researchers have discovered a 16th-century compass that is thought to have been used by astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus in the canonical gardens of Frombork, northern Poland, during a recent archaeological dig.
Copernicus is famously known for his heliocentric theory, which posited that the Sun is the center of the solar system and the planets orbit around it, as presented in his work De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium. Copernicus, who served as a canon at the Frombork cathedral, lived in the town for nearly 30 years, conducting his clerical duties and astronomical observations.
Nicolaus Copernicus famously wrote himself into history by looking up at the sky and speculating that the Sun, not the Earth, was at the center of the universe. Now, researchers from Warminska Grupa Eksploracyjna, an amateur archaeological exploration group in Poland, have made a discovery about Copernicus himself by looking at the ground.
The compass, which was made of a copper alloy, was discovered buried under the gardens of the northern Polish cathedral known as the Archcathedral Basilica of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary and Saint Andrew, or Frombork Cathedral.
The compass is the third of its kind to be found in Poland, and the second to be found in Frombork’s gardens. According to an employee from the Nicolaus Copernicus Museum in Frombork, Zorjana Polenik, the compass “could have belonged to Nicolaus Copernicus himself.”
Nicolaus Copernicus (19 February 1473 – 24 May 1543) was a Renaissance polymath, active as a mathematician, astronomer, and Catholic canon, who formulated a model of the universe that placed the Sun rather than Earth at its center. In all likelihood, Copernicus developed his model independently of Aristarchus of Samos, an ancient Greek astronomer who had formulated such a model some eighteen centuries earlier.
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August Doodle requests for my supporters! :p
((fyi they also wanted my oc as a cookie! so that's Raven in the middle :3))
this next one's based on the AU they've been working on, link here!! they draw cool shtuff ;D
some oc stuff too!
kofi membership link
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