The cover of this volume reproduces a rather interesting detail of the painting Descartes at the Court of Christina of Sweden by Pierre-Louis Dumesnil. Elizabeth, Queen of Bohemia (in the middle), is sitting at the same table as Queen Christina of Sweden (left) and the French philosopher and mathematician Descartes. Since the meeting depicted has no historical foundation, Michele Proclamato has elaborated some fascinating hypotheses on the real intentions of the painter.
Descartes – who appears here in almost an attitude of reproach against Elizabeth of Bohemia (in love with the philosopher) – probably never explained the reasoning behind some of his geometric conclusions to his royal student.
What, then, can be said of the play of hands of the “trio”, which seems to lead inexorably to the numerical-fractional conclusions of Proclamato?
What happens to this imaginary table, however, seems to involve all the bystanders (of whom the identities are not always known). Perhaps, thanks to the investigations developed in this volume, the reason Dumesnil wanted those notables represented together will finally surface and make the painter recognise the ability to go beyond mere artistic ability.
In the painting, it is likely that Pierre-Louis Dumesnil himself, Cardinal De Condé, Marin Mersenne, Francesco Brunacci and Baruch Spinoza are present.
It is now up to the readers, helped by the author’s research, to understand the reason for their coexistence in the painting.