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October 20, 2009
Chair's Column Published in HAD News 75
I mourn the death of cultural astronomer and historian John David North (1934-2008). He was a hero of mine.
North was interested in everything from archaeoastronomy to medieval astronomy to modern astrophysics. He was a generalist, something to which I have aspired to be.
This probably is not the way to build a career in the history of astronomy. Like most other disciplines, the best move is to specialize in a narrow period, place, or topic. However, I have never been able to do that.
Apparently, neither could North. Yet he became chair of the Department of History of Philosophy and Exact Sciences at the University of Groningen and later a Dean. Outside that prestigious institution he perhaps is known best for his Cosmos: An Illustrated History of Astronomy and Cosmology (2008), which I consider to be superior to the Cambridge Illustrated History of Astronomy.
Not that I agreed with everything North did. I think that his book on Stonehenge is bizarre. Yet its emphasis on three-dimensional interpretation of archaeological sites got me to think, if only in rebuttal. And, to me, that is the hallmark of a darn good book.
I never met John North, last of the generalists. He did not travel much, and I do not get to Europe often. I do expect to one day meet his legacy—his students.
Posted by hockey at October 20, 2009 10:56 AM