Pliny's Natural History

The Natural History is an early encyclopedia published circa AD 77-79 by Pliny the Elder. It is one of the largest single works to have survived from the Roman Empire to the modern day and purports to cover all ancient knowledge. The work's subject area is thus not limited to what is today understood by natural history; Pliny himself defines his scope as 'the natural world, or life'.

The work is divided into 37 books, organised into ten volumes. These cover topics including astronomy ...