BOOK ONE

OF THE WORLD, ITS ORDER AND COMPOSITION.

A large, circular woodcut diagram illustrates the Ptolemaic geocentric universe—the cosmological model where the Earth sits at the motionless center of all things. At the heart of the image is the Earth (originally labeled Terra), showing landmasses and clouds. Surrounding the Earth are eleven concentric celestial spheres, numbered on the left side from 1 to 11. Each sphere is labeled in English (translated from the original Latin):
1. THE MOON
2. MERCURY
3. VENUS
4. THE SUN (depicted with a radiating sun-face icon)
5. MARS
6. JUPITER
7. SATURN
8. THE FIRMAMENT (The sphere of the fixed stars, containing icons for the twelve signs of the zodiac: the Ram, the Bull, the Twins, the Crab, the Lion, the Virgin, the Scales, the Scorpion, the Archer, the Goat, the Water-Bearer, and the Fish)
9. THE CRYSTALLINE HEAVEN
10. THE FIRST MOVER (The Primum Mobile)
11. THE EMPYREAN (The highest, stationary heaven)
The diagram is positioned beneath a decorative horizontal banner featuring interlaced scrollwork patterns.

Empyrean (The highest heaven; in this period, it was believed to be the dwelling place of God and the angels, consisting of pure light or fire).
First Mover (Known as the Primum Mobile, this was the outermost moving sphere that provided the motion for all the inner spheres).
Crystalline Heaven (A transparent sphere added by astronomers to account for the "trepidation" or slow wobbling of the stars).
Firmament (The eighth sphere, which contains the fixed stars as opposed to the "wandering stars" or planets).
Zodiac (A belt of the heavens divided into twelve signs, serving as a celestial coordinate system for navigation).
Geocentrism (The astronomical theory that the Earth is the stationary center of the universe, around which all celestial bodies revolve).
Cosmography (The science of mapping the general features of the universe, combining elements of astronomy, geography, and navigation).