REVISTA ESPAÑOLA
DE HISTORIA DE LAS CIENCIAS DE LA NATURALEZA
Y DE LA TECNOLOGÍA
SPANISH JOURNAL OF HISTORY OF NATURAL SCIENCES AND TECHNOLOGY
Historia de la Biología.
Facultad de Biología.
Universidad Complutense de Madrid.
DL: M-34954-1995. ISSN:
1136-2049.
1995. Vol. I. Editorial.
At present the historiographic contributions on the scientific and technical past of Spain and Latin America are known in the international community very partially. One of the causes is the lack of specialized means with wide and rapid diffusion.
ANTILIA intends be one of the communication vehicles of the numerous investigations that being accomplished in Spain and Latin America by historians of the science and the technology. It will have a world and rapid diffusion area through INTERNET. So that could be read by a wide community will be bilingual (English-Spanish). Its editors will guarantee a rigorous quality and originality.
The magazine will publish Articles of History of Natural Sciences (Physical, Chemistry, Biology and Geology) and of Technology, preferably devoted to Spain and Latin America, without this exclude other projects, that by its great interest and importance, would be advisable to spread. It will include Reviews on published books of this specialty and short Notes that, by its interest, suits to divulge.
It will be edited a Volume each year, that it will be able to have one or several Numbers. The incorporation of the articles will be automatic so that the community know them quickly.
ANTILIA will have two Editors and the Articles will be evaluated before be published by recognized solvency specialists.
Though will be used the net INTERNET to make to arrive it to the persons interested, loose Articles, numbers and volumes will be able requested the publishers to send in computer support or paper.
Our greater interest as publishers is that ANTILIA serves to make known our scientific and technical past. We have the hope of the fact that with these knowledge will be able to contribute to explain in more objective way the development of our peoples and that of the whole those which constitute our current society.
On the name Antilia.
The Cordovan Lucio Anneo Seneca in his tragedy Medea wrote the following verses:
Venient annis
saecula seris, quibus Oceanus
vincula rerum laxet, et ingens
pateat tellus, Tiphis qui novos
detegat orbes, nec sit terris
ultima Thule
The Admiral Columbus in his Book of the Prophecies translated it as:
"Vernán los tardos años del mundo, ciertos tiempos en los quales el mar Océano afloxará los atamientos de las cosas y se abrirá una grande tierra, y un nuevo marinero, como aquel que fué guía de Jasn, que obo nombre Tiphis, descobrirá nuevo mundo, y en entonces no será la isla Tille la postrera de las tierras" Biblioteca Nacional de Madrid (ms. 2497, fol.55 v°).
From this Thule or Tille, or best Tilia, the plural form, comes Antilia, which means what was there before these lands.
Antilia was a fabulous island of great size located in the latitude of the Iberian Peninsula or rather to the South. It was represented in all medieval maps (Pizigano, 1367), although also it appears in some Roman coins. It was the island discovered by the Roman, when pushed by chance or by premeditated inquiry, they crossed the tempestuous open sea. Toscanelli considered it an intermediate stage before arriving to Catay.
Antilia is an imaginary continent that could be the symbol of union between Europe and America.
THE EDITORS
Joaquín Fernández Pérez
Luis Alfredo Baratas Díaz