--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is good to recall that three centuries…" description: "\"“It is good to recall that three centuries ago, around the year 1660, two of the greatest monuments of modern history were erected, one in the West and..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce5/abdus-salam-30357_craftsmanship_it-is-good-to-recall-that-three-centurie_3110281.jpg" --- # It is good to recall that three centuries ago, around the… ![“It is good to recall that three centuries ago, around the year 1660, two of the greatest monuments of modern history were erected, one in the West and one in the East; St. Paul's Cathedral in London and the Taj Mahal in Agra. Between them, the two symbolize, perhaps better than words can describe…” quote by Abdus Salam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce5/abdus-salam-30357_craftsmanship_it-is-good-to-recall-that-three-centurie_3110281.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce5/abdus-salam-30357_craftsmanship_it-is-good-to-recall-that-three-centurie_3110281.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce5/abdus-salam-30357_craftsmanship_it-is-good-to-recall-that-three-centurie_3110281.jpg) > ““It is good to recall that three centuries ago, around the year 1660, two of the greatest monuments of modern history were erected, one in the West and one in the East; St. Paul's Cathedral in London and the Taj Mahal in Agra. Between them, the two symbolize, perhaps better than words can describe, the comparative level of architectural technology, the comparative level of craftsmanship and the comparative level of affluence and sophistication the two cultures had attained at that epoch of history. But about the same time there was also created—and this time only in the West—a third monument, a monument still greater in its eventual import for humanity. This was Newton's Principia, published in 1687. Newton's work had no counterpart in the India of the Mughals.”” [Abdus Salam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abdus-salam/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote contrasts monumental achievements of the West and East, highlighting architecture and scientific breakthroughs, and argues that Newton’s work had a uniquely profound impact on humanity. **In simple terms:** Western science outshone Eastern achievements at that time. Key Takeaway Recognize the lasting influence of scientific ideas. Themes history science culture comparison achievement Mood reflective inquisitive Type analytical historical When to use this quote - education curricula - public lectures - museum exhibits - cross‑cultural studies Key Concepts Newtonian physics architectural history civilizational development Questions to Reflect On - How does scientific progress shape cultural identity? - What other non‑Western breakthroughs are under‑recognized? A Different Perspective It overlooks contributions of non‑Western scholars to science. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Craftsmanship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/craftsmanship/) [Culture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/culture/) [Genius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/genius/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Isaac-newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/isaac-newton-2/) [Modern history](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/modern-history/) [Monument](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/monument/) [Monuments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/monuments/) [Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/newton/) [Taj mahal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/taj-mahal/) ## Related quotes > [“The known is finite, the unknown infinite; intellectually we stand on an islet in the midst of an illimitable ocean of inexplicability. Our business…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-henry-huxley/the-known-is-finite-the-unknown-infinite-intellectually-we-stand-on-2/) [Thomas Henry Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-henry-huxley/) > [ In science its main worth is temporary, as a stepping-stone to something beyond. Even \[Newton's\] Principia ... is truly but the beginning of a… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augustus-william-hare/in-science-its-main-worth-is-temporary-as-a-stepping-stone-to/) [Augustus William Hare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augustus-william-hare/) > [I esteem his understanding and subtlety highly, but I consider that they have been put to ill use in the greater part of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiaan-huygens/i-esteem-his-understanding-and-subtlety-highly-but-i-consider-that/) [Christiaan Huygens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiaan-huygens/) > [“The result of the scientific work we have been considering was that the outlook of educated men was completely transformed. At the beginning of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/the-result-of-the-scientific-work-we-have-been-considering-was-that/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [“If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of Giants.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-newton/if-i-have-seen-further-it-is-by-standing-on-the-shoulders-of-giants/) [Isaac Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-newton/) > [Nobody since Newton has been able to use geometrical methods to the same extent for the like purposes; and as we read the Principia…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-whewell/nobody-since-newton-has-been-able-to-use-geometrical-methods-to-the/) [William Whewell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-whewell/) > [I am delighted to know that Principia Mathematica can now be done by machinery. . . I am quite willing to believe that anything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/i-am-delighted-to-know-that-principia-mathematica-can-now-be-done-by/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [“ Newton supposed that the case of the planet was similar to that of \[a ball spun around on the end of an elastic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kingdon-clifford/newton-supposed-that-the-case-of-the-planet-was-similar-to-that-of-a/) [William Kingdon Clifford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kingdon-clifford/) > [“The reason Dick 's physics was so hard for ordinary people to grasp was that he did not use equations. The usual theoretical physics…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/the-reason-dick-s-physics-was-so-hard-for-ordinary-people-to-grasp/) [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) > [“The usual consolations of life, friendship and sex included, appealed to Newton hardly at all. Art, literature, and music had scarcely more allure. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-dolnick/the-usual-consolations-of-life-friendship-and-sex-included-appealed/) Edward Dolnick > [“A number of years ago, when I was a freshly-appointed instructor, I met, for the first time, a certain eminent historian of science. At…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/a-number-of-years-ago-when-i-was-a-freshly-appointed-instructor-i-met/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [“… for it is very probable, that the motion of gravity worketh weakly, both far from the earth, and also within the earth: the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/for-it-is-very-probable-that-the-motion-of-gravity-worketh-weakly/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [“...The Presidential election has given me less anxiety than I myself could have imagined. The next administration will be a troublesome one, to whomsoever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-adams/the-presidential-election-has-given-me-less-anxiety-than-i-myself/) [John Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-adams/) > [“I have received the favor of your letter of August 17th, and with it the volume you were so kind as to send me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/i-have-received-the-favor-of-your-letter-of-august-17th-and-with-it/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [That small word "Force," they make a barber's block, Ready to put on Meanings most strange and various, fit to shock Pupils of Newton……](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-clerk-maxwell/that-small-word-force-they-make-a-barber-s-block-ready-to-put-on/) [James Clerk Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-clerk-maxwell/) ## More by Abdus Salam > [Alfred Nobel stipulated that no distinction of race or colour will determine who received of his generosity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abdus-salam/alfred-nobel-stipulated-that-no-distinction-of-race-or-colour-will/) [Abdus Salam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abdus-salam/) > [Soon I knew the craft of experimental physics was beyond me - it was the sublime quality of patience - patience in accumulating data,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abdus-salam/soon-i-knew-the-craft-of-experimental-physics-was-beyond-me-it-was/) [Abdus Salam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abdus-salam/) > [Politicians - well, first of all, they should get rid of nuclear weapons, I think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abdus-salam/politicians-well-first-of-all-they-should-get-rid-of-nuclear-weapons/) [Abdus Salam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abdus-salam/) > [Mankind spends much more on training pilots of aircraft than it does to train the nuclear reactor operators.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abdus-salam/mankind-spends-much-more-on-training-pilots-of-aircraft-than-it-does/) [Abdus Salam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abdus-salam/) > [“I firmly believed that with the breadth of knowledge now makes it impossible for someone to be a polymath in the 20th century-until I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abdus-salam/i-firmly-believed-that-with-the-breadth-of-knowledge-now-makes-it/) [Abdus Salam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abdus-salam/) > [Personally I would like to see that the nuclear age, in terms of power, does come, because there's no long-term future for developing countries…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abdus-salam/personally-i-would-like-to-see-that-the-nuclear-age-in-terms-of-power/) [Abdus Salam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abdus-salam/) > [People either buy nuclear power, nuclear reactors from outside, and don't train their own men, or they just don't go into nuclear power at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abdus-salam/people-either-buy-nuclear-power-nuclear-reactors-from-outside-and-don/) [Abdus Salam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abdus-salam/) > [From time immemorial, man has desired to comprehend the complexity of nature in terms of as few elementary concepts as possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abdus-salam/from-time-immemorial-man-has-desired-to-comprehend-the-complexity-of/) [Abdus Salam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abdus-salam/) > [The Chernobyl technology is different from the technology which is used in the west, mainly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abdus-salam/the-chernobyl-technology-is-different-from-the-technology-which-is/) [Abdus Salam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abdus-salam/) > [I'm afraid there's a big confusion in the world between nuclear power and nuclear arms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abdus-salam/i-m-afraid-there-s-a-big-confusion-in-the-world-between-nuclear-power/) [Abdus Salam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abdus-salam/) > [This sense of wonder leads most scientists to a Superior Being - der Alte, the Old One, as Einstein affectionately called the Deity -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abdus-salam/this-sense-of-wonder-leads-most-scientists-to-a-superior-being-der/) [Abdus Salam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abdus-salam/) > [Before Chernobyl or without Chernobyl the nuclear power was the safe thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abdus-salam/before-chernobyl-or-without-chernobyl-the-nuclear-power-was-the-safe/) [Abdus Salam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abdus-salam/) > [Scientific thought and its creation is the common and shared heritage of mankind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abdus-salam/scientific-thought-and-its-creation-is-the-common-and-shared-heritage/) [Abdus Salam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abdus-salam/) > [In this respect, the history of science, like the history of all civilization, has gone through cycles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abdus-salam/in-this-respect-the-history-of-science-like-the-history-of-all/) [Abdus Salam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abdus-salam/) > [I am a particle physicist, which is the nearest branch to nuclear physics. So in that sense I was the sort of right connection…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abdus-salam/i-am-a-particle-physicist-which-is-the-nearest-branch-to-nuclear/) [Abdus Salam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abdus-salam/) [Explore all 17 Abdus Salam quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abdus-salam/) ## More Craftsmanship quotes > [“The instruction here is not for every kind of writer - not for the writer of nurse books or thrillers or porno or the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gardner/the-instruction-here-is-not-for-every-kind-of-writer-not-for-the/) [John Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gardner/) > [“A kilt swings with the wind and stands firm in spirit—Scottish soul in every fold.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haider-ali-bajwa/a-kilt-swings-with-the-wind-and-stands-firm-in-spirit-scottish-soul/) Haider Ali Bajwa > [I am very much interested in the so-called useless object. I mean, it takes perfect craftsmanship, beautiful material carefully measured and crafted, but at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ai-weiwei/i-am-very-much-interested-in-the-so-called-useless-object-i-mean-it/) [Ai Weiwei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ai-weiwei/) > [Skill without imagination is craftsmanship and gives us many useful objects such as wickerwork picnic baskets. Imagination without skill gives us modern art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/skill-without-imagination-is-craftsmanship-and-gives-us-many-useful/) [Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/) > [Stanley Kubrick, I had been told, hates interviews. It's hard to know what to expect of the man if you've only seen his films.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-cahill/stanley-kubrick-i-had-been-told-hates-interviews-it-s-hard-to-know/) [Tim Cahill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-cahill/) > [There is in Albert Camus’ literary craftsmanship a seductive intelligence that could almost make a reader dismiss his philosophical intentions if he had not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aberjhani/there-is-in-albert-camus-literary-craftsmanship-a-seductive/) [Aberjhani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aberjhani/) > [“A small compromise leads to another small compromise, and finally we wind up doing something that we do not really love. It's a sneaky…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-krenov/a-small-compromise-leads-to-another-small-compromise-and-finally-we/) James Krenov > [What's important is the way we say it. Art is all about craftsmanship. Others can interpret craftsmanship as style if they wish. Style is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/federico-fellini/what-s-important-is-the-way-we-say-it-art-is-all-about-craftsmanship/) [Federico Fellini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/federico-fellini/) > [Faulkner is a writer who has had much to do with my soul, but Hemingway is the one who had the most to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/faulkner-is-a-writer-who-has-had-much-to-do-with-my-soul-but/) [Gabriel Garcia Marquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/) > [“What if the link or key to healing was through finding your unique personal creative outlet?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-dennis-evans/what-if-the-link-or-key-to-healing-was-through-finding-your-unique/) Michelle Dennis Evans > [Art that submits to orthodoxy, to even the soundest doctrines, but lacks imagination and deep self-expression is lost leaving only the craftsmanship.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-gide/art-that-submits-to-orthodoxy-to-even-the-soundest-doctrines-but/) [Andre Gide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-gide/) > [My uncles represented a strength and a power I think that to a certain degree I looked up to. But from another perspective, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willie-herron/my-uncles-represented-a-strength-and-a-power-i-think-that-to-a/) [Willie Herron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willie-herron/) > [Lies can be wonderful things, and when a lie is told artfully, if it's done with a degree of craftsmanship, I can't help but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-dewitt/lies-can-be-wonderful-things-and-when-a-lie-is-told-artfully-if-it-s/) [Patrick deWitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-dewitt/) > [ “Oculus\[2,3,8,12,8,6\] = \[14,2,10,7,5\] = \[12,2,3,17\] = \[14,12,13\] = \[1,15\] = 14, Box Model For Paisbox Molecular Portal \[phirand, ring, circlet, diadem, itemizer, abstracter\] Attributes=… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-roy-mckinney-gero-eagleo2/oculus-2-3-8-12-8-6-14-2-10-7-5-12-2-3-17-14-12-13-1-15-14-box-model/) Jonathan Roy Mckinney Gero EagleO2 > [“Postpone, not because you are being lazy. Postpone, only because you want to appear in a grand style.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bassey-johnson/postpone-not-because-you-are-being-lazy-postpone-only-because-you/) [Michael Bassey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bassey-johnson/) [Browse all 144 Craftsmanship quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/craftsmanship/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It is good to recall that three centuries ago, around the year 1660, two of the greatest monuments of modern history were erected, one in the West and one in the East; St. Paul's Cathedral in London and the Taj Mahal in Agra. Between them, the two symbolize, perhaps better than words can describe, the comparative level of architectural technology, the comparative level of craftsmanship and the comparative level of affluence and sophistication the two cultures had attained at that epoch of history. But about the same time there was also created—and this time only in the West—a third monument, a monument still greater in its eventual import for humanity. This was Newton's Principia, published in 1687. 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