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Francis Bacon's New Atlantis, first published in 1627, a year after its author's death, was the first book by an Englishman to view science as a dominant institution in the emerging world. By contrast, the Utopia of his predecessor, Thomas More (1478-1535), written more than a century earlier as a document of social protest on behalf of the displaced lower class, afforded no glimpse of the scientific civilization in the making. Bacon's New Atlantis, furthermore, stands out as an exception to the dreary anti-Jewish sentiments that pervaded the great Elizabethan writers such as Marlowe and Shakespeare. For after his first days on the Pacific island of Bensalem, the hero of the New Atlantis has the good fortune to make the acquaintance of a helpful Jew: 'By the time six or seven days were spent, I was fallen into straight acquaintance with a merchant of that city, whose name was Joabin. He was a Jew and circumcised; for they have some few stirps of Jews yet remaining among them, whom they leave to their own religion.' Unlike the Jews in other parts of the world, however, 'who hate the name of Christ, and have a secret inbred rancour against the people amongst whom they live', the Jews of Bensalem 'gave unto our Saviour many high attributes, and love the nation of Bensalem extremely'.1 It was Joabin who enabled Bacon's hero to meet with 'the father of Salomon's House', the island's scientific institute, no member of which had been seen in the town for the last twelve years. Salomon's House, 'the noblest foundation, as we think, that ever was upon the earth', was, according to the governor of the island's house of strangers, founded 'about 1900 years ago' by a great king by the name of Salomona. Since the king of Bensalem had much in common with 'the king of the Hebrews' in the ancient records, 'this order or society is sometimes called Solomon's House', leading some to think that 'it beareth the founder's name a little corrupted'. Sometimes too, it was called 'the College of Six Days' Work; whereby I am satisfied that our excellent king had learned from the Hebrews that God had created the world, and all that therein is, within six days: and therefore he instituted that house, for the finding out of the true nature of all things, whereby God might have the more glory in the workmanship of them, and men the more fruit in the use of them'.2 According to the Jew Joabin, furthermore, the inhabitants of Bensalem themselves were descended from the father of the Hebrews, Abraham, 'by another son whom they call Nachoran', while Moses himself was alleged to have 'by a secret cabala ordained the laws of Bensalem'. Bacon's protagonist,
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