Jan Franco (active 1586–1611) was a physician, mathematician and astronomer who compiled almanacs. He was born in the village of

Eersel Eersel () is a municipality and a town in southern Netherlands in the province of North Brabant. Eersel is situated in the Campine (Kempen) area. Eersel is part of the Acht Zaligheden (Eight Beatitudes) and known for its attractive market. Thi ...

in the

Duchy of Brabant The Duchy of Brabant was a State of the Holy Roman Empire established in 1183. It developed from the Landgraviate of Brabant and formed the heart of the historic Low Countries, part of the Burgundian Netherlands from 1430 and of the Habsburg Neth ...

and studied medicine at the University of Leuven. He settled in

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

to practice medicine and was given the

freedom of the city The Freedom of the City (or Borough in some parts of the UK) is an honour bestowed by a municipality upon a valued member of the community, or upon a visiting celebrity or dignitary. Arising from the medieval practice of granting respected ...

. He was a practicing physician at least until 1594. As he had studied both medicine and mathematics, he was asked to calculate the ephemerides, for purposes of medical astrology. This led to his work as a compiler of almanacs from 1586 to 1611. From 1612 to 1621

Arnout Coninx Arnout Coninx (1548–1617) was a printer and bookseller in the city of Antwerp from 1579 until his death in 1617. In 1586 he was fined for unlicensed printing, and in 1591 he was investigated for selling forbidden books. When the city of Antwerp ...

and his widow were selling almanacs based on Franco's drafts but completed for publication by his son, Jan Franco jr., and by Johannes Regius. At least as late as 1616 almanacs prepared by others were being sold on the strength of their association with Franco.

Publications

* ''Almanach ende prognosticatie voer het iaer Heeren MDLXXXVI nae de oude ende nieuwe calculatie, voor dese Nederlanden principalijck dienende: met die daghelijckse ghetijden der vaert van Bruessel'' (Antwerp, Henrick Wouters, 1586) * ''Almanach oft journael voor't schrickel-jaer ons Heeren M.D.LXXXVIII'' (Antwerp,

Joachim Trognaesius Joachim Trognaesius, sometimes Trognesius or Trogney (died 23 June 1624), was a printer and bookseller in late-16th-century and early-17th-century Antwerp. Life Joachim Trognaesius is first mentioned as a bookseller in the accounts of the Planti ...

, 1588) * ''Almanach oft journael voor het jaer M.D.XCIII'' (Antwerp, Arnout Coninx, 1593) * ''Ephemeris meteorologica'' (Antwerp, Arnout Coninx, 1594) * ''Almanach oft journael voor het jaer M.D.XCV'' (Antwerp, Arnout Coninx, 1595) * ''Almanach, oft journael voor t'schrickeljaer M.D.XCVI, voor den 7. climaet dienende. Met die dagelijcsche getijden der vaert van Brussel'' (Antwerp, Arnout Coninx, 1596) * ''Almanach oft journael voor her jaer M.D.XCVIII'' (Antwerp, Arnout Coninx, 1598) * ''Ephemeris metheorologica practica'' (Antwerp, Arnout Coninx, 1599) * ''Kalender, oft journael, voor het jaer M.D.XCIX. voor den 7. climaet dienende. Met die dagelijcsche getijden der vaert van Brussel'' (Antwerp, Arnout Coninx, 1599) * ''Ephemeris metheorologica. Seer schoone beschrijvinge van de revolutie ende het gulden schrickeljaer ons heeren 1600'' (Antwerp, Arnout Coninx, 1600) * ''Kalender oft iournael voor t'iaer ons Heeren M.D.C.XV.'', edited by Jan Franco jr. (Antwerp, Arnout Coninx, 1615)Available on Google Books
Accessed 8 July 2016. * ''Ephemeris metheorologica'' (Antwerp, Arnout Coninx, 1615)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Franco, Jan Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown Physicians from the Habsburg Netherlands 16th-century Dutch astronomers 16th-century astrologers Almanac compilers