Italiano

Le machine

This machine book by Branca (1571 – 1640 or 1645; b. Sant’Angelo in Lazzola, d. Loreto) contains 77 illustrations in three sections. The first deals with machines for general purposes such as mills, metal rollers, hoists and machines for metallurgy and agriculture; the second with pumps and water-lifting devices; and the third with automata. There are early depictions of a clutch and a reversible clutch. Branca’s very early representations of a steam jet used to power a turbine were well known and republished often. Although sometimes reported to be the first representation of a steam engine, in fact it bears no relation to later pressurized steam piston devices. Branca’s steam turbine is more of an adaptation of a steam jet, or aeolipile , as described earlier by Hero of Alexandria. Unlike in other mid-17th-century machine books, the illustrations are rather crude, but charming. Fifty-five of the 77 woodcuts have a small area set aside for a figure number. In a further 17 woodcuts, a blank area takes up as much as one-quarter to one-third of the image. Only five woodcuts do not have a blank area. Each illustration has descriptive text in both Latin and Italian. 1st edition, octavo

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