Abstract

The content of a recent historical work (L. Russo, "L'America dimenticata", Milano, Mondadori Università, 2013) is described, with particular attention to the logical role played in the reasoning of the author by a specific category of images, in which the representation of a «concrete» spatial background interacts with theoretically constructed objects. Through the analysis of some examples from major works in the history of science, this category of images is claimed to be characteristic of emerging sciences.