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Primary sourceBook1620

Novum Organum

Francis Bacon · 1620

Bacon's major Latin treatise of 1620 setting out a new method of inductive reasoning to replace Aristotelian logic.

Bacon's own philosophical masterwork, the foundation of his reputation as father of empiricism.

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Engraved title page of Novum Organum Scientiarum by Francis Bacon, Leiden 1645, showing two classical columns, ships on the sea, and the Latin motto Multi pertransibunt & augebitur scientia.
Francis Bacon, title page of Novum Organum, Leiden edition, 1645. Houghton Library, Harvard University.

About this source

What it is

Novum Organum is a philosophical work written in Latin by Francis Bacon and published in 1620. It formed Part II of his larger plan, the Instauratio Magna. The title page shows a ship sailing between the mythical Pillars of Hercules, with a Latin motto meaning 'Many will travel and knowledge will be increased.'

Why it matters

In this book Bacon rejected old methods of reasoning by pure logic and argued that knowledge should be built up carefully from observation and experiment. This approach, later called the Baconian method, helped shape what became the modern scientific method, and it is why Bacon is often called a father of experimental philosophy.

Look closer

  • What does the image on the title page suggest about Bacon's hopes for science?
  • Why might writing in Latin rather than English have mattered in 1620?
  • What does Bacon think is wrong with the old way of seeking knowledge?

This book is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Francis Bacon on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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Title page of New Atlantis, printed in old-style typeface: 'NEVV ATLANTIS. A Vvorke vnfinished. Vvritten by the Right Honourable, Francis Lord Verulam, Viscount St. Alban.' Below the text is a small ornate woodcut frame with a figure and a winged creature.Book

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Engraved title page of a 1640 Oxford edition of Bacon's work. Two obelisks flank a central banner reading 'Of the Advancement and Proficience of Learning or the Partitions of Science'. Globes, a ship, owls, and Latin inscriptions appear, with the imprint 'Oxford, Printed by Leon Lichfield'.Book

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