Balthasar de Monconys (1611-1665) was a French physicist and judge, born in Lyon. In 1618, Monconys' parents sent him to a Jesuit boarding school in Salamanca, Spain, as a plague had broken out in Lyon. Monconys was deeply interested in metaphysics and mysticism, and studied the teachings of Pythagoras, Zoroastrism, and Greek and Arab alchemists. From a young age, he dreamed of travelling to India and China. However, he returned to Lyon after finishing his studies. At the age of thirty-four years old he was finally able to leave behind the safety of his library and the theoretical speculation of the laboratory, and become a tireless traveller in Europe and the East.

Monconys travelled to Portugal, England, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Istanbul and the Middle East with the son of the Duke of Luynes. Even in his very first journey to Portugal, it is obvious that in each city Monconys is very soon able to connect with mathematicians, clergymen, surgeons, engineers, chemists, physicians and princes, to visit their laboratories and to collect “secrets and experiences”.

After Portugal, Monconys travelled to Italy, and finally departed to the East, to study the ancient religions and denominations, and meet the gymnosophists. In 1647-48 he was in Egypt. Seeking the Zoroasters and followers of Hermes Trismegistus, he reached Mount Sinai. In Egypt, the 17th century European was lost in a labyrinth of small and winding streetlets, and discovered different cults and religions, the diversity of ethnicities and their customs: Turks, Kopts, Jews, Arabs, Mauritans, Maronites, Armenians, and Dervishes. He followed several superstitious suggestions and discovered marvellous books of astronomy in Hebrew, Persian and Arabic. Later on, after his pilgrimage to the Holy Land, he crossed Asia Minor and reached Istanbul, from where he planned to travel to Persia. For once more in his life however, the plague forced him to change his course; he left for Izmir, and returned to Lyon in 1649.

Fron 1663 to 1665 Monconys travelled incessantly between Paris, London, the Netherlands and Germany. He visited princes and philosophers, libraries and laboratories, and maintained frequent correspondence with several scientists. Finally, after consequent asthma attacks he passed away before his travel notes could be published.

His travel journal (1665-1666) was edited and published by his son and by his Jesuit friend J. Berchet. The journal is enriched by drawings which testify to the wide scope of Monconys' interests. Monconys collected a vast corpus of material which includes medical recipes, chemistry forms, material connected to the esoteric sciences, mathematical puzzles, questions of Algebra and Geometry, zoological observations, mechanical applications, descriptions of natural phenomena, chemistry experiments, various machines and devices, medical matters, the philosopher's stone, astronomical measurements, magnifying lenses, thermometres, hydraulic devices, drinks, hydrometres, microscopes, architectural constructions and even matters connected to hygiene or the preparation of liquors.

The third volume includes a hundred and sixty-five medical, chemical and physics experiments with their outcomes as well as a sonnet on the battle of Marathon. There are five detailed indexes for the classification of the material. At the same time, this three-volume work permits the construction of a list of names (more than two hundred and fifty) of scholars, physicians, alchemists, astrologists, mathematicians, empirical scientists and other researches. From Monconys' text and correspondence a highly interesting network emerges, as it is possible for specialists of all disciplines to reconstruct the contacts between scientists and scholars of Western Europe, for a period spanning more than a decade in the mid-17th century.

Monconys' work is written in a monotonous style, but nevertheless possesses a perennial charm, as it is a combination of a travel journal and a laboratory scientist's workbook. The drawings accompanying the text make up a corpus of material unique in travel literature.

Written by Ioli Vingopoulou

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  51. The prince heir to the Ottoman throne. On his right, the window through which the Sultan spied on the meetings of the Divan (assembly of Ottoman officials). 52. Plan of the Tower of Leander (bottom right). Plan of mosque (bottom centre). Drawing of minaret (bottom left) and other architectural and decorative features of a mosque (top) 57. Detail from wall decoration of the imperial mosques of Istanbul. 63. Wooden floor of Ottoman house in Istanbul.

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  46. Ottoman aqueduct in Belgrade forest, Istanbul. 50, 51 and 52. Architectural features of the aqueduct. 48. Monastery on Chios island. 54. The Sultan.

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  49. Ottoman kiosk on the Golden Horn. 57. View of Aetna volcano. 58 Water fountain in the open sea, a meteorological phemomenon witnessed by the author off the coast of Sicily.

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  Title page of the first volume of the edition.

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  Dedication page.

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  1. The mausoleum of Manuel I of Portugal at the Convent of the Order of Christ, Tomar, Portugal. 2. The sarcophagus of Manuel I of Portugal. 3. Water-douching tool used for the cleaning of cannons. 4. Banana tree.

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  Lighting device similar to a lantern, belonging to the Count of Alcantara in Portugal. The hydraulic mechanism of the lantern greatly impressed the author, and the Count gave it to him as a gift.

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  Lighting device similar to a lantern, belonging to the Count of Alcantara in Portugal. The hydraulic mechanism of the lantern greatly impressed the author, and the Count gave it to him as a gift.

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  9. Map of Gibraltar. 10. The constellation of Scorpio. 11. The cap worn by the Doge of Genoa. 12. Drawing of the interior stairway of the Arsenale building, Genoa. 13, 14. Author's study on the light spectre of different types of lanterns. 15,16, 17. Instrument for the distillation of mercury which the author saw in Italy. Instruments of the type were widely used in 17th century alchemist circles.

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  18. Map of Alexandria. 19. Turban of a mufti. 20, 21. Drawing on the movement of the planets, accompanying the author's analysis of Galilee's theory.

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  Device for water compression.

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  24. Mount Horeb. 25. Monastery near Mount Moses, Egypt, which the author calls “Monastery of the Burning Bush”. 26. View of the Sphinx at Giza necropolis, Cairo. 28. Church near Cairo. 29. The Pyramids of Giza. Graves in Ottoman cemetery of Cairo. 31. The rock of Meribah on Mount Choreb. 32. Mount Sinai with the monastery of Saint Catherine and Mount Moses.

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  33. View of Mount Sinai with the Monastery of Saint Catherine (in the background, on the right). In the centre, Mount Moses. In the foreground, a monastery near Mount Sinai, styled by the author “The Monastery of the Burning Bush”.

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  34. Fish of Egypt. 35. Orthodox priest wearing Easter vestments. 36. Decoration of the staff of an Orthodox priest. 31. The Church of the Virgin of the Apparition on Mount Horeb. 32. Water pump at water mill near Mount Sinai. 33 Azyme (unfermented) bread.

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  36. Panoramic view of Jerusalem. 37. The tombs of Josaphat, Absalon and Zechariah at Kidron Valley, Jerusalem. 38. Remains of monumental building on the Mount of Olives where, according to tradition, Jesus prayed before his arrest. View of the Tombs of the Kings outside Jerusalem. The tomb of Absalom at Kidron Valley. The castle of Yaffa.

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  View of the castle of Heliopolis (Baalbek) in Lebanon, with the temple of Zeus in the background. Architectural and decorative features from the temple of Zeus in Baalbek. Dervish and Muslim holy man.

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  Title page of the second volume of the edition.

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  Irrigation machine. The author was given a tour of the installations of this irrigation system during his journey to Britain.

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  Devices and other objects used in scientific experiments.

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  Wooden floor at Oxford University, which impressed the author by its style and workmanship.

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  Instrument with magnifying lens to aid the detailed drawing of objects.

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  18. Astronomical instrument. 19, 20. Condensation vessels (to turn gas into solid matter)21. Instrument for making detailed drawings, used in architecture and astronomy. 22. Drawing of coal mine, showing the ventilation system.

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  Instrument used in experiments on vacuum.

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  24. Buildings at Bruges, Belgium. 25. Plan of Bruges Town Hall. 26. View of the port of Bruges. 27. The building in which Charles V was born in Ghent, Belgium.

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  29. Fire-extinguishing vehicle in Antwerp, Belgium. 30. View of the Doric columns of the Antwerp City Hall. 31. Outline of the fortifications of the city walls. 32. Sarcophagus of a cardinal at Liége.

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  35. Linden tree outside the main entrance to the castle of the Hague. 36. The owner of the inn the author stayed at during his visit to the Hague. 37. Channel at the Rhine Delta, the Hague. 38. Plan of palace on the Rhine, at Hammerstein (today Neuwied), Germany

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  40, 41. Water-powered hoist. 42. Hot bath (sauna) which the author studied in Essen, Germany. 44. The Town Hall of Hilldesheim, Germany. 45. House in Hanover, Germany. 46. Headwear typically worn by the women of Hanover.

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  49-59. Test tubes. 52. View of Hohentwiel castle at Singen, Germany.

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  Title page of the third volume of the edition.

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  Tables and vials for the calculation of the relative density of liquids.

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  Drawings accompanying the author's exposition on the measurement of diametre and perimetre of circles and hemicycles.

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  Drawings accompanying the author's exposition on the measurement of diametre and perimetre of circles and hemicycles.

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  Drawings accompanying the author's exposition on the main theorems of Geometry.

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  Architectural ruler.