Alle de brieven. Deel 12: 1696-1699
(1989)–Anthoni van Leeuwenhoek–
Auteursrechtelijk beschermdGepubliceerd in:
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Korte inhoud:L. bedankt voor twee brieven van Magliabechi en hij beklaagt zich dat het aan hem gezonden boek nog niet is aangekomen. | ||
Opmerkingen:De tekst van de brief is te vinden op fol. 15r-16v. Op fol. 16v bevindt zich naast een rood lakzegel de door L. eigenhandig geschreven adressering: Illustrissimo, Celeberrimo, Doctissimo, Do: Antonio Magliabechi. franco Augsburg, Florencen. | ||
Letter No. 189
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Published in:
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Summary:L. thanks Magliabechi for two of his letters, and complains that the book sent to him has not yet arrived. | ||
Remarks:The text of the letter is to be found on fol. 15r-16v. On fol. 16v, by the side of a red wax seal, is the address written by L. himself: Illustrissimo, Celeberrimo, Doctissimo, Do: Antonio Magliabechi. franco Augsburg, Florencen. | ||
Illustrissimo, Clarissimo, Doctissimo
Utramque, Vir Illustris, epistolam Tuam, ad me datam in tempore accepisse me scias; atque ex earum altera didicisse, placuisse Tibi me (nil tale merentem) beare Libro tantae molisGa naar voetnoot2), ut vix viginti quinque ei similes in orbe inveniantur, eoque insuper nitidissime compacto; Te vero eum Librum commisisse Nobilissimo Do Lucae GiambertioGa naar voetnoot3), quem jam tum Dusseldorpiam attigisse existimabas. Harum ego rerum certior factus, Dusseldorpiam ad Nobilissimum illum Virum scripsi, eum rogans ut Librum, abs Te mihi donatum, committeret navi mercenariae, quae, Dusseldorpiam praeternavigans, Colonia Agrippina Dordracum, Hollandiae oppidum tendere soleret; quoniam hoc pacto Liber ille mihi procul dubio ad manus veniret. Ad haec respondit Vir Nobilissimus et Humanissimus, litteris datis 19 Julii 1697, Dominum LottyGa naar voetnoot4) Medicum Florentinum, jam ante biduum in Hollandiam profectum, seque eam arripuisse occasionem, ut Is Munus Tuum ad me perferret. Ex eo tempore in dies magno cum desiderio Librum, eumque Ferentem, at frustra, exspectavi; hactenus enim nec volam ejus nec vestigium, non sine magna animi aegritudine, rescire mihi datum fuit. Interim tamen infinitis me Tibi nominibis obstrictum ex animo agnosco, qui tanta erga me usus fuisti liberalitate ac munificentia, cujus tamen effectis per infortunium meum, proh dolor! frui mihi non licuit. Atque nihilominus benevolentiam Tuam in me incomparabilem, ex hocce iterum testimonio, abunde edoctus, maximas Tibi habeo agoque, dum referre non licet, gratias, non minus quam si Munus Tuum, quo nunc careo, re ipsa accepissem; velim interim eum mihi illucescere diem, quo iustas Tibi exsolvere grates, non verbis sed factis, queam. Citius quidem, Vir Illustris, ad Litteras Tuas humanissimas rescripsissem, sed, dum missum abs Te librum exspectarem, ut eo accepto gratum simul testarer animum, hactenus responso supersedere necesse habuiGa naar voetnoot5). | ||
Antoni van Leeuwenhoek greets the Most Illustrious,
I inform you, Illustrious Sir, that I have duly received Your two letters addressed to me and that I learned from one of them that You have been pleased to make me happy (quite underservedly) with a Book of such importanceGa naar voetnoot2) that scarcely 25 such books are found in the world, and moreover very handsomely bound; and that You entrusted that Book to the Very Noble Mr. Luca GiambertiusGa naar voetnoot3), who, as you thought, had already reached Düsseldorf at that time. Having been informed of these facts, I wrote to Düsseldorf to this Very Noble Gentleman, requesting him to send the Book with which You presented me by a freighter which used to sail from Cologne via Düsseldorf to Dordrecht, a town in Holland, because in that way the Book would no doubt reach me. Hereupon, in a letter of 19 July 1697, the Very Noble and Very Learned Gentleman replied that Mr LottyGa naar voetnoot4), a Physician in Florence, had left for Holland two days before and that he had taken this opportunity to ask This Mr Lotty to deliver Your Present to me. From that moment I looked forward from day to day with great eagerness to that Book and the Person who was to deliver it; but in vain, for up to the present I have not been granted the least sign of him, which was a great disappointment to me. Meanwhile I yet acknowledge with all my heart that I owe infinitely much to You, who have shown me such great generosity and munificence, although, alas! through unfortunate circumstances I have not been able to benefit by their effect. Nevertheless, as long as I cannot show my gratitude in actual fact, I thank You no less, now that I have amply experienced Your imcomparable benevolence towards me, through this new testimony, than if I had actually received Your Present, of which I am now deprived; meanwhile I hope that the day may come when I shall be able to show you my gratitude properly, not in words but in deeds. Illustrious Sir, I should indeed have replied sooner to Your very learned Letter, but until today I thought it necessary to refrain from answering it while I was | ||
Non parum etiam me Illustri tuo Nomini devinctum fateor, ob communicatos mecum Librorum, in Italia novorum, titulosGa naar voetnoot6). Ingenti denique me affectum fuisse, scias velim, gaudio, ubi rescirem missos a me Tibi libellos, tanti apud Te habitos fuisse, ut iis in Bibliothecis serenissimi Magni DucisGa naar voetnoot7), nec non Eminentissimi Principis CardinalisGa naar voetnoot8), locum dare non fueris dedignatus. Ob haec, aliaque omnia iterum atque iterum Tibi ago gratias; ac Deum O.M.Ga naar voetnoot9) supplex veneror, ut Te, ad Rei Litterariae bonum, diu incolumem servet. Vale Vir Illustris, et mihi, meisque ut coepisti, favere perge.
Dabam Delfis Hollandorum
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waiting for the book sent by You, in order that I might declare my gratitude as soon as I had received itGa naar voetnoot5). Further I acknowledge my great obligation to your Illustrious Name for having informed me of the titles of Books which are new in ItalyGa naar voetnoot6). Finally I would inform you that I was very glad to learn that You considered the booklets I sent You of such value that you did not disdain to give them a place in the Libraries of the most serene Grand DukeGa naar voetnoot7) and of His Eminence the Prince and CardinalGa naar voetnoot8). For this and all the rest I thank You once more, and I humbly beseech Almighty God to keep You long in good health, for the benefit of the Sciences. Farewell, Illustrious Sir, and may you continue to be favourably disposed towards me and mine, as you have been from the beginning.
Given at Delft in Holland
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