Breve storia editoriale del Tableau Economique

François Quesnay, a surgeon, is rightly considered to be one of the founding fathers of modern economic science. However, as an economist, his career shows two remarkable aspects which should not be overlooked. First, he came across political economy relatively late, when he was already in his sixties. Second, his new interest in economics was surprisingly short-lived: less than 15 years. Indeed, Quesnay,s creative period, as far as economic theory is concerned, is limited to the decade 1756-1766, which is marked by the succession of his famous Tableaux Economiques.