#1710

The alligator vs. the snake.

Maria Sybilla Meriaen Over de voortteeling en wonderbaerlyke veranderingen der Surinaemsche insecten. 1710.

Comet from Gnosia

"I do like her tattoos that are actually a living slime organism that can kill you"

Spectacled Caiman (Caiman crocodilus) and a False Coral Snake (Anilius scytale), ca. 1705 - 1710

Artist: Maria Sibylla Merian

Here's some suggestions for your next feast.

From: Lamb, Patrick. Royal Cookery; : Or, The Complete Court-Cook. Containing the Choicest Receipts in All the Particular Branches of Cookery, Now in Use in the Queen’s Palaces of St. James’s, Kensington, Hampton-Court, and Windsor. London: A. Roper, 1710.

George Berkeley

George Berkeley (1685-1753) was an Anglo-Irish bishop and an empiricist and idealist philosopher. He infamously claimed that no matter exists outside of God and that things only exist outside of our minds and perceptions because God perceives them. This extreme position, although not total scepticism, has drawn much criticism from other philosophers ever since. Berkeley's work continues to be studied for his cutting insights into the nature of philosophical enquiry and his insistence that philosophers not dream up world views that contradict common sense.

Early Life

George Berkeley was born on 12 March 1685 in Kilcrin near Dysert Castle in County Kilkenny, Ireland. Berkeley studied at Trinity College in Dublin where he received a B.A. degree in 1704. Three years later, Berkeley was made a fellow of the university. He joined the priesthood, being ordained into the Anglican Church in 1709. After a spell in London, Berkeley gradually worked his way up the church hierarchy. He was appointed the Dean of Derry in 1724.

Berkeley visited North America in 1728, staying in Rhode Island for three years. He had hoped to found a Christian college on the island of Bermuda, but when the government withdrew promised funding, this never became a reality. He did give both money and books to Yale University. In 1731, Berkeley returned to London and continued his philosophical enquiries into what exactly constitutes knowledge.