Principles of New Science of Giambattista Vico concerning the Common Nature of the Nations: As the full title of his work indicates, Vico's aim was to lay down the universal principles of the comune natura della nazioni. Alas, as any reader of the work could see, Vico confined his range of meditations and investigations mainly to the profane history of gentile nations, and repeatedly emphasized the fact that his discoveries and conclusions about the ferine origins and growth of humanity should not be applied to the sacred history of the Hebrew-Christian nations. In his account, the Hebrews, upon receiving the revealed truths directly from God, began to live a kind of hidden life, isolated from all other nations, and so were able to retain and safeguard their true beliefs, customs, and records for themselves. Hence, Vico's conclusion that their entire development was radically different from that of all other peoples.