Thomas Harriot on the coinage of England (Q2420596)

The paper under review discusses the part of the scientific work of Thomas Harriot (1560--1621) involving aspects of weight and density of gold and silver coins of his time. The methods may now seem `easy' but were significant advances during his time and needed skills not only in mathematics but also in basic physical laws. However, the most important aspect of this work was their direct relevance to matters of national economy and trade. The paper discusses all of these aspects and much more. In particular, several fascinating aspects of the later history of Harriot's papers are discussed in great detail. There are four short appendices at the end of the paper which describe Harriot's calculations in a more modern mathematical notation (in some places Harriot's original notation suffice). Overall, the paper is very interesting and sheds new light on Harriot's scientific work.