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Discovery of Galileo’s long-lost letter shows he edited his heretical ideas to fool the Inquisition

Exclusive: Document shows that the astronomer toned down the claims that triggered science history’s most infamous battle — then lied about his edits.
  1. Alison Abbott
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Close up of Galileo's letter

The original letter in which Galileo argued against the doctrine of the Roman Catholic Church has been rediscovered in London. Credit: The Royal Society

It had been hiding in plain sight. The original letter — long thought lost — in which Galileo Galilei first set down his arguments against the church’s doctrine that the Sun orbits the Earth has been discovered in a misdated library catalogue in London. Its unearthing and analysis expose critical new details about the saga that led to the astronomer’s condemnation for heresy in 1633.

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Nature 561, 441-442 (2018)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-018-06769-4

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