The Roman politician, orator and philosopher Cicero composed a philosophical treatise on the state (‚De re publica‘), which only survives in small fragments. One of the passages known is the ‚Somnium Scipionis‘ (‚Scipio’s dream‘). Here, one of the partner of the fictitious dialogue, the Roman politician and general Scipio, describes a cosmic vision in which a statesman receives heavenly rewards. Explanations about the spherical form of the Earth are also included.
In addition to this text, the main part of the manuscript contains the late classical commentary by Macrobius.
Four schematic drawings have been inserted into the manuscript. One of them shows a planiglobe, i.e. a two-dimensional depiction of Earth. The Earth consists in two parts in the North and South, each of which is composed of a narrow moderate zone (‚terra temperata‘) and two hostile freezing (‚terra frigida‘) or hot (‚terra perusta‘) zones. Italy and the Orkney Islands are marked with inscriptions.
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