Isidore of Seville's On the Nature of Things, the first attempt by a Christian author to present an account of the physical universe – the heavens, planets and stars, earth and its physical features, weather and time – played an exceptionally influential role in the assimilation of classical science into the emerging Christian culture of medieval Europe.

Illustrations and Table                              Acknowledgements                                Abbreviations                                    IntroductionIsidore’s Life, Times, and Writings   Education                                   Grammar as a principle of knowledge   Church discipline and biblical exegesisIsidore’s On the Nature of Things in Context   Structure                                   Occasion   Purposes and preoccupations   Appeal to reason                               Wider ends: a Christianized erudition?Composite Construction                                 Text and image   Fontaine’s theory of three Recensions   Single or multiple authorship?   The short recension: two types   The medium recension   Three Spanish interpolations?   The long recension   The mystical addition Out of Spain and Into the Future     Ireland and Anglo-Saxon England       Traffic between Spain and Italy   Gaul   Germany and Switzerland: the Zofingenmeta morphosis   On the Nature of Things in manuscript and printInventory of Manuscripts and EditionsPrinciples Governing this Translation   Isidore of Seville: On the Nature of ThingsPreface: Isidore, to his Lord and Son, SisebutList of Chapters1. Days2. Night3. The Week4. The MonthsDiagram 1: the months5. The Concordance of the Months6. The Years7. The Seasons                                Diagram 2: the seasons8. The Solstice and the Equinox9. The World10. The Five Circles of the WorldDiagram 3: the circles of the world11. The Parts of the WorldDiagram 4: the elementsDiagram 5: the macrocosm and microcosm12. Heaven and Its Name13. The Planets of Heaven14. The Heavenly Waters    15. The Nature of the Sun16. The Size of the Sun and the Moon17. The Course of the Sun18. The Light of the MoonDiagram 5A: the phases of the moon19. The Course of the Moon20. The Eclipse of the Sun21. The Eclipse of the Moon22. The Course of the Stars23. The Position of the Seven Wandering StarsDiagram 6: the planets24. The Light of the Stars25. The Fall of the Stars26. The Names of the Stars27. Whether the Stars have a Soul28. Night29. Thunder30. Lightning31. The Rainbow32. Clouds33. Rains34. Snow35. Hail36. The Nature of the Winds37. The Names of the WindsDiagram 7: the winds38. Signs of Storms or Fair Weather39. Pestilence40. The Ocean’s Tide41. Why the Sea does Not Grow in Size42. Why the Sea has Bitter Waters43. The River Nile44. The Names of the Sea and the Rivers45. The Position of the Earth46. Earthquake47. Mount Etna48. The Parts of the EarthDiagram of the world: T-O map           CommentaryAppendices1. The Verse Epistle of King Sisebut2. Introductory Formulas for the Diagram of the Winds (Diagram 7) in Chapter 37 3. Extracts from Chapter 37 Arranged within the Diagram of the Winds4. The Poem of the Winds5. Textual Insertions in Chapter 48 and T-O Map6. The Zofingen and English Types of the Long Recension                                                        Bibliography                                    Index of Sources                                General Index  

Reviews 'We can no longer use the definitive Jacques Fontaine edition of 'On the Nature of Things'without taking into account the additions and corrections of Calvin B. Kendall and Faith Wallis, sufficing to show the importance of the book.'Bryn Mawr Classical Review, 2017