Athanasius Kircher
German writer, philosopher, scientist and genius (1601-1680). Jesuit. Wrote 40+ books, invented the megaphone and the tory.html">magnetic clock. [Catholic Encyclopedia] [wikipedia] [google]
Kircherianum Virtuale: list of sites
Stanford's Athanasius Kircher Project includes images, Kircher's China research, his correspondence and more.
Articles and information on Kircher
For further reference