Cortes de Albacar, Martin

1. Dates

Born: Bujaraloz, Spain, at unknown date. It is known only that he went to Cadiz before 1530.

Died:before 1582.

Dateinfo: Dates uncertain

Lifespan: unknown

2. Father

Occupation: Unknown

He claimed that his father was of an ancient and noble family.

No information on financial status.

3. Nationality

Birth: Spanish

Career: Spanish

Death: Spanish

4. Education

Schooling: No University

5. Religion

Affiliation: Catholic (assumed)

6. Scientific Disciplines

Primary: Navigation

7. Means of Support

Primary: Unknown

Cortes was, according to his own statement, the offspring of an ancient and noble family of Aragon. That is all that is known, if that is in fact known.

8. Patronage

Type: Court

One of the few things known about Cortes is that he dedicated his influential book on navigation, Breve compendio de la esfera to Charles V.

Navarrete says the Cortes sent a copy of the work to Juan Parent, a patrician of Valencia.

9. Technological Involvement

Type: Navigation

10. Scientific Societies

Memberships: None

Sources

1. José Maria Lopez Piñero, et al., Diccionaria historico de la ciencia moderna en España, 2 vols. (Barcelona: Ediciones Peninsula, 1983). Jose Maria Lopez Pinero, Ciencia y tecnica en la sociedad espanola de los siglos XVI y XVII, (Barcelona: Labor, 1979).
2. Diccionario enciclopedico hispano-americano, 5.
3. M. Fernandez de Navarrete, Disertacion sobre la historia de la nautica y de las mathematicas, (Madrid, 1846).
4. L. Labarta, biographical introduction to Cortes, Breve compendio, (Zaragoza, 1941).
5. D. W. Waters, The Art of Navigation in Elizabethan and Stuart Times, (New Haven, 1958).
6. E. G. R. Taylor, The Haven-finding Art, (New York, 1956).
7. The fact is that very little is known about this man except for his book.

Compiled by:

Richard S. Westfall

Department of History and Philosophy of Science

Indiana University

Note: the creators of the Galileo Project and this catalogue cannot answer email on geneological questions.