ABSTRACT
Astrology was “the most systematic attempt to explain natural phenomena according to rigorous scientific laws until the modern scientific revolution”. It was commonly seen as the practical arm of astronomy and extending even into the seventeenth century they were seen as the same science; There were also related matters to do with predicting the future and advising on behaviour and action such as the influence that the complexions had on humans; physiognomy and chiromancy; lunar astrology and lunar prognostication; geomancy; aspects of alchemy; and prognostications relating to Christmas Day and New Year’s Day and canicular days. The Wise Book of Philosophy and Astronomy and the information it purveys is not directly succeeded by the almanacs: at a basic level, it favours the comprehension of the universe as a system and places only secondary emphasis on prognostication and on reading the future.
