Calendars, Prognostications, and Mathematics in Paul of Middelburg (1445?-1534)

Paul of Middelburg (1445?-1534) is notably cited by Copernicus – both as bishop of Fossombrone and as an astronomer – when dedicating De revolutionibus orbium coelestium to Pope Paul III. This workshop offers the first systematic exploration of Paul’s scientific profile: his mathematical and astronomical work, his activity as astrologer and physician at the court of Federico da Montefeltro in Urbino, and his role in late-fifteenth and early-sixteenth-century debates where astronomy and astrology were closely intertwined. Paul vigorously advocated a calendar reform, promoted the study of algebra and mechanics, and produced a substantial corpus of prognostications. By tracing how he connected calculation, observation, and predictive practices, the workshop reconstructs a coherent “science of time” and situates it within the scholarly networks that linked the Duchy of Urbino with the Low Countries, bridging northern and southern Renaissance Europe and placing scientific expertise at the heart of contemporary political life.