About Second Renaissance Research
The original Renaissance was sparked by rediscovering ancient texts. We're working to unlock the half million that came next.
The Embassy of the Free Mind
This research is based at the Embassy of the Free Mind in Amsterdam, home to the Bibliotheca Philosophica Hermetica—one of the world's most important collections of texts on Western esotericism, Hermetica, alchemy, mysticism, and Rosicrucianism.
The Ritman Library holds over 25,000 books and manuscripts documenting the history of spiritual thought from antiquity to the present. Many of these texts—like much of Renaissance Latin scholarship—remain untranslated and inaccessible to modern readers.
The Problem We're Addressing
Between 1450 and 1700, European printers produced over 500,000 Latin works. These books represent the bulk of Renaissance intellectual output: theology, philosophy, law, medicine, natural philosophy, poetry, and more.
Less than 2% have English translations.
This creates a profound accessibility gap. Scholars working on the history of science cannot read Newton's sources. Religious historians cannot access Reformation theology. Legal historians cannot examine the jurisprudence that shaped modern law. The intellectual foundations of the modern world are locked away in a language few can read.
What We're Building
SOURCE LIBRARY
Our freely accessible collection of translated primary sources. As we complete translations, they're published here for scholars and the public alike.
Visit Source Library →DATA VISUALIZATION
Interactive visualizations of the Universal Short Title Catalogue (USTC), mapping 1.6 million printed works across Europe. Charts, maps, and timelines that make the scale of the opportunity visible.
Explore the data →TRANSLATION ROADMAP
A systematic framework for prioritizing which untranslated works matter most. Tiered recommendations based on historical impact, translation gap, feasibility, and audience reach.
View the roadmap →RESEARCH ESSAYS
In-depth analysis of the translation landscape, forgotten authors, Renaissance bestsellers, and the methodology behind our estimates.
Read the essays →How to Support This Work
The Ancient Wisdom Trust is the fundraising arm of our translation initiative. Your contributions directly fund:
- Translation projects — Professional scholars translating priority texts
- Digitization efforts — Making manuscript scans searchable and accessible
- Cataloging work — Building comprehensive databases of what exists and what's been translated
- Open access publishing — All translations are published freely at Source Library
Every contribution, regardless of size, helps unlock texts that have been inaccessible for centuries.
The Larger Vision
The first Renaissance transformed European thought by recovering Greek and Roman texts that had been forgotten for centuries. Scholars like Ficino and Pico della Mirandola translated works that reshaped philosophy, science, and art.
But the Renaissance itself produced half a million Latin works—and those are now as inaccessible as the ancient texts once were. The same pattern holds for Sanskrit, Classical Arabic, and Classical Chinese: vast corpuses of human thought, locked away by language barriers.
The tools for a second renaissance—digitization, OCR, AI-assisted translation—are advancing rapidly. What's needed is coordination and funding. Our hope is that this project demonstrates both the scale of the opportunity and the feasibility of seizing it.
Support the Work
The Ancient Wisdom Trust funds cataloging, digitization, and translation of essential texts. Every contribution helps unlock more of the hidden libraries.
Donate to Ancient Wisdom TrustOpen Access & Licensing
We believe knowledge should be freely accessible. All our work is released under open licenses compatible with the Internet Archive and academic use:
Contact
For inquiries about this research or potential collaborations, contact us through the Embassy of the Free Mind.