Nostradamus, Les Prophéties

Record summary

AI-recalled lead: Michel de Nostredame’s Les Prophéties, first printed in 1555 and expanded through later editions, presents quatrains attributed to an astrologer and medical practitioner. Readers have retrospectively connected its deliberately obscure verses to political revolutions, wars and disasters, making it a major case in prophecy reception. The text’s dating, editions, variant readings and post-event interpretation matter more than claims of prediction. Comparison can examine ambiguity, translation, selective matching and the role of publishers and later commentators in creating prophetic authority.