Samuel Mikovíny

Samuel Mikovíny (Slovak, also spelled "Mikovini" or "Mikovíni") or Mikoviny Sámuel (Hungarian) (1686 or ca. 1700 – 23 March 1750) was a renowned mathematician, engineer, map maker, and professor. He was a leading representative of science and technology in the 18th century Kingdom of Hungary and Habsburg Monarchy. Today he is the pride of both the Slovak and Hungarian nations.

Biography

Mikovíny was possibly in Turíčky (now Cinobaňa) in 1686 or in Ábelová ca. 1700. He learnt engraving at Nuremberg, and studied mathematics at the nearby university of Altdorf and later in Jena. He probably took private lessons in astronomy and surveying in Vienna before he returned to Bratislava (called Pressburg or Pozsony at that time).

In Nuremberg, Mikovíny showed that he was a good engraver and a gifted artist. His series of engravings, views of Altdorf and Nuremberg was published in a booklet of Altdorf in 1723. The publication also included a map of the district. From 1725, he was county engineer in Bratislava, in the Kingdom of Hungary. He devoted most of his attention to improvement works, especially anti-flood works on the banks of the river Danube and Váh, work to secure their navigability, and regulation work near Tata. He also concerned himself with astronomy at an observatory which he had established at his home in present-day Laurinská Street in Bratislava. His astronomical observations served map-making.

Mikovíny made a significant contribution to the making of a new map of the Kingdom of Hungary. He relied on his own measurements and used a scientific method, based on four basic principles: astronomical, geometrical, magnetic, and hydrographic. His work was significantly influenced by another renowned Slovak scholar of the 18th century living in the multi-ethnic Kingdom of Hungary, Matthias Belius (Matej Bel).

Earlier Mikovíny engraved a map of Demänovská Cave and several illustrations for Bel’s book "Hungariae antiquae et novae prodromus" (Messenger of Old and New Hungary), published in 1723 in Nuremberg. From 1731 Mikovíny constructed county maps for Bel’s great work, "Notitia Hungariae Novae Historico-Geographica". Mikovíny created the first topographical maps of individual counties of the Kingdom of Hungary. He also contributed to the work with illustrations, especially views of towns and castles. Mikovíny used his own prime meridian for the Kingdom of Hungary, the "meridianus Posoniensis", which passed through the northeast tower of Bratislava Castle.

Mikovíny made a significant contribution to the development of mining in Upper Hungary, today central Slovakia, helping it to achieve a place among the most technically developed industries in Europe at that time. He was a leading expert on the construction of water reservoirs, mining machinery, foundries, and mills. His chief contribution is construction of a sophisticated system of reservoirs, known as tajchy, which drained water from the flooded mines in Banská Štiavnica and provided energy for its local industry. In 1735, Mikovíny became the first professor of the school of mining at Banská Štiavnica, which later became the first technical university in Europe. He lectured on mathematics, mechanics, hydraulics, and surveying methods and supervised practical work in land and mine surveying.

From 1735, Mikovíny was a member of the Prussian Academy of Sciences in Berlin. He also worked as an engineer and builder of roads and bridges. During the Silesian Wars, Empress Maria Theresa of Austria employed him as a military engineer. He designed and built defensive and fortification works on the Moravian-Silesian frontier. In 1748, he carried out regulation work in the area of Komárno, and at the time devoted attention to archaeological research. He studied and described the remains of the Roman fortress of Brigetio in Szőny, and made a plan of it. Various buildings were erected according to his plans. In 1749, he prepared plans for construction of a royal palace in Buda, and carried out preparation of the castle hill and construction of water treatment works for it. In 1750, he carried out anti-flooding works on the river Vah. During the works, he became ill and died on March 23 1750 at a now unknown place on the road from Trenčín to Banská Štiavnica.

External links

* [http://www.geodat.szm.sk/zaujimavosti/stranky/samuel_mikovini.htm Samuel Mikovini] sk icon
* [http://www.sulinet.hu/eletestudomany/archiv/2000/0020/mikoviny-s/mikoviny.html Mikoviny Sámuel] hu icon