De Re Metallica

I agree with the description in hsifeng's review, but the book in my opinion is far from "dry". It starts with an amazing account by Agricola of why mining is a virtuous activity, one he explcitly compares to agriculture and many others. It also has some of the earliest "industrial health" information ever published, when it discusses the toxicity for workers of mercury and other metals.

REENACTORS VIEW: 1556 (translated from the original Latin) 638 pages: Everything you've ever wanted to know about the making of metals in our period. From finding the correct ore to smelting and foundry work. But dddddrrrrrryyyyyyy read. This was one of the first 'illegal' texts that gave away Guild secrets (in this case, the miners guild) by printing them and selling them to the public in book form. However, there are many images - mostly of tools and machines - that I have never seen presented in any other format.

Translation of the original text. This is a reprint of Herbert Hoover's translation. Very interesting reading. We have certainly come a long way from the processes described in this book.

Unabridged Dover (1986) republication of the 1912 edition.; "This new 1950 edition of De re metallica is a complete and unchanged reprint of the translation published by The mining magazine, London, in 1912"--T.p. verso.