Step inside the dazzling world of the sixteenth-century scientist.

'A scintillating journey into a world where discoveries rip through doctrine like meteors. There is magic in these pages.' —Daisy Dunn, author of The Missing Thread

'In this fascinating study of the early scientific revolution, when experimental thought was beginning to emerge from Medieval scholasticism, Violet Moller brings to life the trailblazers of this new age.' —Paul Strathern, author of The Other Renaissance

'Moller continues the story of science’s spread, shifting her lens northward and tightening her frame to the 16th century... It’s an appealing method: follow the stories of the people, but imagine visiting the places, which are handsomely evoked... [a] pacy narrative... By the end, I wanted to visit all these places.' —Spectator

‘In her lucid account of this transformative age, the historian and podcaster Violet Moller shows how the two strands – the practical and the hermetic and magical – interacted and informed one another.’ —New Statesman

'Inside the Stargazer's Palace plunges us into an irresistible network of touchy scientists, unpredictable patrons and religious controversy in the sixteenth century, antechamber of the modern world. Violet Moller is an assured and expert guide to this world, writing with a light touch and an infectious love of her subject.' —Christopher de Bellaigue, author of The Lion House

‘Inside the Stargazer’s Palace takes the reader to places they are unlikely to have visited and to figures they are unlikely to know… Violet Moller brings the world to life vividly and with style.’ —Nicholas Spencer, author Magisteria

'A scintillating journey into a world where discoveries rip through doctrine like meteors. There is magic in these pages.' —Daisy Dunn, author of The Missing Thread

'In this fascinating study of the early scientific revolution, when experimental thought was beginning to emerge from Medieval scholasticism, Violet Moller brings to life the trailblazers of this new age.' —Paul Strathern, author of The Other Renaissance

'Moller continues the story of science’s spread, shifting her lens northward and tightening her frame to the 16th century... It’s an appealing method: follow the stories of the people, but imagine visiting the places, which are handsomely evoked... [a] pacy narrative... By the end, I wanted to visit all these places.' —Spectator

‘In her lucid account of this transformative age, the historian and podcaster Violet Moller shows how the two strands – the practical and the hermetic and magical – interacted and informed one another.’ —New Statesman

'Inside the Stargazer's Palace plunges us into an irresistible network of touchy scientists, unpredictable patrons and religious controversy in the sixteenth century, antechamber of the modern world. Violet Moller is an assured and expert guide to this world, writing with a light touch and an infectious love of her subject.' —Christopher de Bellaigue, author of The Lion House

‘Inside the Stargazer’s Palace takes the reader to places they are unlikely to have visited and to figures they are unlikely to know… Violet Moller brings the world to life vividly and with style.’ —Nicholas Spencer, author Magisteria

Violet Moller is a critically acclaimed and award-winning historian, who has written four previous books, including The Map of Knowledge. She presents the Travels Through Time podcast, one of the Guardian’s five best podcasts for the curious-minded, and lives in Oxford.

Violet Moller is a critically acclaimed and award-winning historian, who has written four previous books, including The Map of Knowledge. She presents the Travels Through Time podcast, one of the Guardian’s five best podcasts for the curious-minded, and lives in Oxford.