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- Title
L’astrolabe nautique de Montréal de 1631 et son contexte.
- Authors
Loewen, Brad; Dieulefet, Gaëlle; Castro, Filipe
- Abstract
The identification in Montréal of a nautical astrolabe previously unknown to specialists has prompted a new look at instruments of this type held in Canada and France. Mariners used the astrolabe to measure the elevation of the sun or the North Star and thus calculate their latitude. Cast in Lisbon in 1631, the Montreal instrument belongs to the historical collection of the Sulpician fathers. Since the context of its acquisition is unknown, this study examines a possible link with two Sulpicians – René Bréhant de Galinée, navigator, and Jean Cavelier, brother of the famous explorer Cavelier de La Salle. This research then considers the instrument within the corpus of 11 nautical astrolabes known in Canada and France. Made in Spain, France, and Portugal, these pieces shed light on the evolution of navigation practices in the North Atlantic in the 16th and 17th centuries. This study identifies Honfleur as a production centre in France. Nautical astrolabes played a role in the social construction of scientific maritime knowledge tied to the State, a process that involved religious orders, including the Montréal Sulpicians.
- Subjects
MONTREAL (Quebec); SULPICIANS; NAVIGATION; HISTORY of navigation; SOCIAL constructionism
- Publication
Archéologiques, 2022, Issue 35, p1
- ISSN
1190-9110
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.7202/1089838ar