OBSERVATION OF THE ETHEREAL COMET, WHICH APPEARED IN THE YEAR 1577, WITH ITS ADMIRABLE PASSIONS, EMPLOYING GEOMETRIC AND ARITHMETIC DEMONSTRATIONS.

A decorative drop cap 'A' features floral and foliate scrollwork.

In the previous year, 1577, a Comet was seen shining in the sky, truly horrible in appearance, which engulfed the minds of all who saw it in no light consternation, as no one could persuade himself that it was not a sign sent by God of some significant impending calamity.

Since it is hardly pleasing to the divine will that its prodigious works should either go unnoticed by mortals, or be neglected or vilified in some slothful torpor, especially if it admonishes and provokes us to extinguish its own implacable wrath now flaring up, or exhorts us to embrace its immense grace with open arms, but rather it is a pleasure to Him if, having shaken off all slumber and set aside idleness (which usually overwhelms us in not contemplating the singular works of God), we exercise ourselves in them through diligent meditations: I do not augur that I am doing poorly if I collect what the thinness of my talent can say about this Comet to illustrate the glory of God in this work of His.

Although it is not new that torches of this kind are seen shining in the sky—for the writings and monuments of our ancestors report that such sad torches were ignited in the sky, trailing a long hair, like a tail, from which Comets or hairy stars or peacock tails or rods or bundles of whips were named, and were seen even in ancient times—it has happened because of this that many do not magnify them if they appear again. Yet I think that hardly anyone will be able to prove from histories that another similar to this Comet has been noticed at any time. For besides the fact that it chose a place for itself not in the elemental region of the world, but in the ethereal one, as will be demonstrated below, it was found to have had very many other things that exceed human belief and are not common to previous Comets.