Mathematical Treasure: Descartes’ Collected Letters

As with many other intellectuals of the 17^th century, Réne Descartes (1596-1650) was a frequent correspondent with the scientists and philosophers of the period. Several collections of his correspondence have been made. One of the first of these collections was Lettres de M^R Descartes, published in three volumes in 1663, 1666, and 1667. The first volume in this series contains 118 letters, most of which were directed to Marin Mersenne (1588-1648).

The image above is presented courtesy of the University of Pennsylvania Libraries.

Index to Mathematical Treasures