Herbaria as manuscripts: Philology, ethnobotany, and the textual-visual mesh of early modern botany.

While interest in early modern herbaria has so far mainly concentrated on the dried plants stored in them, this paper addresses another of their qualities - their role as manuscripts. In the 1670s, the German botanist Paul Hermann (1646-95) spent several years in Ceylon (today Sri Lanka) as a medical officer in the service of the Dutch East India Company. During his stay he put together four herbaria, two of which contain a wealth of handwritten notes by himself and several later owners. First, it will be shown that these notes provide information on the linguistic skills and interests of those who collected plants in an overseas trading settlement. Hermann's botanical practice demanded and, at the same time, generated knowledge of Sinhalese (an Indo-Aryan language that is spoken by the largest ethnic group on the island) and its script. In his herbarium, observations on the semantics, morphology, and pronunciation of Sinhalese are inextricably intertwined with those of botanical nature. Second, on the basis of these voluminous notes, the character of early modern herbaria as manuscripts will be highlighted. And third, Hermann's herbaria will be integrated into an investigation of scribal practices and publication strategies of eighteenth-century botany. Along with field notes, letters, manuscripts, illustrations, and printed books, herbaria were knots in the textual-visual mesh of early modern botany.

"From the Known to the Unknown:" Nature's Diversity, Materia Medica, and Analogy in 18th Century Botany, Through the Work of Tournefort, the Jussieu Brothers, and Linnaeus.

The growth of botany following European expansion and the consequent increase of plants necessitated significant development in classification methodology, during the key decades spanning the late 17th to the mid-18th century, leading to the emergence of a "natural method." Much of this development was driven by the need to accurately identify medicinal plants, and was founded on the principle of analogy, used particularly in relation to properties. Analogical reasoning established correlations (affinities) between plants, moreover between their external and internal characteristics (here, medicinal properties). The diversity of plants, names, and botanical information gathered worldwide amplified confusion. This triggered the systematisation of the collection and referencing of data, prioritizing the meticulous observation of plant characteristics and the recording of medicinal properties as established by tradition: it resulted in principled methods of natural classification and nomenclature, represented by the genus, to enhance reliability of plant knowledge, which was crucial in medical contexts. The scope of botany increased dramatically, with new methods broadening studies beyond traditional medicinal plants. The failure of chemical methods to predict properties, particularly of unknown flora, amplified the reliance on analogy and on natural affinities.

Ethnopharmacology in the work of the British botanist Arthur Francis George Kerr (1877 - 1942).

Reports on traditional use of medicinal plants may be used as starting points for phytochemical and pharmacological research. As has recently been shown, publications, letters, diaries and reports of exploring botanists are a valuable source of historical ethnopharmacological information. In this study, the heritage of the British botanist Arthur Francis George Kerr (1877-1942), mainly working in Thailand, was screened for information about traditionally used medicinal plants. Information given was compared to state-of-the-art scientific knowledge about these species. Many historical uses could be confirmed, some did not, while a number of species reported to be traditionally used have not been sufficiently investigated so far. These, strongly suggested for further research, include Kurrimia robusta, Alpinia siamensis, Amomum krervanh (A. testaceum), Trichosanthes integrifolia (= Gymnopetalum scabrum), Croton cumingii (= C. cascarilloides), Lobelia radicans (= L. chinensis), Willughbeia sp., Nyctanthes arbor-tristis, Pluchea indica, Heliotropum indicum, as well as some fungi and woods.

Las fotografías de California de Rafael Castro Ordóñez, miembro de la Expedición Científica del Pacífico (1862-1866): discurso y circulación / Rafael Castro, photographer and chronicler of the 'Expedition Científica del Pacífico' (1862-1866) and his vision of California

En octubre de 1863 Rafael Castro y Ordóñez, artista y fotógrafo de la Comisión Científica del Pacífico, viajó junto al naturalista Francisco de Paula Martínez y Sáez por el estado de California. La Comisión acompañaba una expedición militar y política de corte panhispanista. Fruto de aquel viaje el artista produjo una veintena de fotografías, dibujos y varias cartas que se publicarían en la revista El Museo Universal. Fotografías y crónicas del viaje conforman un corpus de excepcional valor que permite reconstruir el proyecto y su fabricación de una nueva imagen de América tras la independencia de las antiguas colonias y la irrupción de los Estados Unidos como potencia emergente. Este trabajo analiza este discurso y cómo se articuló con relación a este recién incorporado territorio de los Estados Unidos. A lo largo del estudio se revelarán varios fenómenos interesantes, como la ruptura ocasional del discurso, la circulación de las fotografías más allá del contexto de la Expedición o las conexiones de este viaje de exploración con el fenómeno del turismo (AU)

In October 1863, Rafael Castro y Ordóñez, artist and photographer of the Comisión Científica del Pacífico, traveled across the State of California in the company of naturalist Francisco de Paula Martínez y Sáez. The Comisión was associated with a pan-Hispanic military and political expedition. As a result of the expedition the artist produced around twenty photographs, drawings, and several letters that were ultimately published by the Spanish pictorial magazine El Museo Universal. Both his photographs and travel accounts make up an exceptionally valuable body of knowledge allowing to reconstruct not only the Comisión project but also its attempt at portraying a new image of America following the independence of Spain’s former colonies and the ascent of the United States as a world power. This paper analyzes both this discourse and its expression in relation to California, a then recently incorporated US territory. Several interesting phenomena, including occasional breaches in the discourse, the circulation of photographs beyond the expedition’s context, and the connections of this exploration journey with tourism, will be unveiled in the course of the present study (AU)

Terapéutica para tratar el cólera en Yucatán, México (1833-1853). Medicina fisiológica, herbolaria local y régimen moral / Therapy for the treatment of cholera in Yucatan, México (1833-1853). Physiological medicine, local herbalist and moral regiment

Este artículo analiza los pilares que sostuvieron la práctica terapéutica en Yucatán para tratar a los enfermos de cólera durante los brotes registrados antes del descubrimiento de su etiología bacteriana, uno en 1833 y otro en 1853. Debido en parte a una importante evolución del pensamiento médico-científico y a la divulgación de los principios del positivismo, en esta época se vivió un profundo proceso de transformación que significó, entre otras cosas, nuevas percepciones sobre la enfermedad y esquemas distintos a los coloniales para afrontar las emergencias y procurar la salud pública. Sin embargo, ante la falta de consensos en cuanto al origen del cólera y sus medios de propagación, el gobierno estatal promovió la difusión de diferentes técnicas terapéuticas empleadas en Europa o Estados Unidos, que se sumaron al conocimiento local respecto al empleo medicinal de la herbolaria, retomando también antiguas ideas sobre la incidencia de las conductas morales individuales en la propensión al contagio y eventualmente a la muerte (AU)

This article analyzes the pillars that supported the therapeutic practice in Yucatán to treat cholera patients during the outbreaks preceding the discovery of its bacterial etiology, one in 1833 and another in 1853. Due partly to a significant evolution in scientific and medical ideas, and the dissemination of the principles of positivism, a profound process of transformation was experienced, which brought, among other things, new perceptions of the disease as well as schemes different from the colonials to deal with emergencies and ensure public health. However, given the lack of consensus about the origin of cholera and its means of propagation, the government promoted different therapeutic techniques practiced in Europe or the United States, alongside local knowledge on the medicinal use of herbs, while also reviving old ideas on the impact of individual moral behavior in the tendency to contract the disease and eventually die (AU)

Doctors and baldness: a five thousand year old challenge.

The history of trichology follows a thread that continually intersects with that of the history of medicine in general. Even Hippocrates believed that the approach to baldness should be of a medical nature. This confrontation between doctors and hair loss, which has lasted for five thousand years, begins with the invocations of the head physicians in the Egyptian era and ends with the recent institution of postgraduate Master's degrees at Faculties of Medicine and Surgery. The biggest names in medicine concerned themselves with trichology beginning with Hippocrates, who dealt with the topic in his most famous work: the Aphorisms. Even the most celebrated doctors of the Roman era, such as Galen and Pliny the Elder, did not disdain considering hair loss, leaving important scientific contributions before passing on the baton to their distinguished colleagues of the Byzantine Empire. The narrative then flows through the most prestigious institutions of the Middle Ages, such as the Salerno School of Medicine and the Siena Accademia del Fisiocritici where, at the end of the 1600s, the distinguished anatomical describer Marcello Malpighi also taught trichology, and left his contribution to "Hair Science" with a fine description of the hair follicle in the pages of his Opera Posthuma. At the turn of the late Middle Ages and the early modern era, barbers formed the primordial nucleus of surgery and at the same time became the ones to concern themselves with hair loss. In the 1800s, several doctors published the first texts dealing with the anatomy and physiology of the hair and taking into account the principal forms of alopecia, but at the therapeutic level did not yet propose anything scientifically valid. Until a few decades ago trichology still lent itself to various commercial speculations. It was not until the twentieth century that the pathogenetic mechanisms of baldness were clarified in a scientific manner. With this knowledge, the pharmaceutical industry has been able, then, to develop the necessary drugs, and doctors have become willing and able to reappropriate treatments to counteract conditions that lead to hair loss.

Ethnopharmacological information from the botanical correspondence of Berthold Seemann (1825 - 1871)--a pilot study.

Historical research may be able to contribute to the exploration of traditional knowledge about medicinal plants and promising attempts have been made investigating Byzantine texts, Early Modern herbals, and writings of Christian missionaries. In this pilot study it should be explored if publications, travel reports, diaries or correspondence of the botanical explorers of the 19th and early 20th centuries may serve a source of ethnopharmacological information as well and may be able to guide modern phytopharmacological research. Writings of Berthold Seemann (1825-1871), a German investigator exploring the botany of Middle America, the Fiji islands and other regions, are investigated as a first example. It could be shown that Seemann's heritage mainly kept at Kew Garden Archives, does contain ethnopharmacological information which in part has already been confirmed by recent study results indicating some reliability of his observations. However, there are also reports about traditional medicinal plants scarcely investigated so far, including Schultesia stenophylla Mart. (syn. S. guainensis (Aubl.) Malme), Trixis inula Crantz, Waltheria glomerata Presl., Gonophlebium attenuatum (Humb. & Bonpl. Es Wil\d) C. Presl., or Pseudoelephantopus spicatus (Juss ex Aubl.) C.F. Baker. It is suggested to further explore their potential as medicinal plants. In general, as Seemann's example has shown, publications and correspondence of botanical explorers of the past seem to be a valuable and hitherto almost neglected source of information to be considered in further historical and ethnopharmacological research.

[Remy Willemet (1735-1807), naturalist, professor of natural history and chairman of the botanical garden of Nancy]. / Rémy Willemet (1735-1807), naturaliste, professeur d'histoire naturelle et directeur du jardin botanique de Nancy.

Rémy Willemet is above all a local botanist whose first work was selected by the academy of Nancy in 1766. His notoriety began when another work with Jean-François Coste was chosen by the academy of Lyon ten years later. He published then in many papers and was elected in numerous academies and scientific societies. During the Revolution, he was a professor of the Ecole centrale de la Meurthe and of the Société de santé, and he became the chairman of the botanical garden. Willemet wrote some botanical books. Today, what is the memory of his researchs and papers? Fairly few things because he never undertook botanical travels in order to discover and compare pharmaceutical plants. However, Willemetia was the name used to denominate some species and honour his family. His name was also engraved on the wall of some university buidings and it was chosen some years ago to entitle a botanical paper in Lorraine.

Science in the service of colonial agro-industrialism: the case of cinchona cultivation in the Dutch and British East Indies, 1852-1900.

The isolation of quinine from cinchona bark in 1820 opened new possibilities for the mass-production and consumption of a popular medicine that was suitable for the treatment of intermittent (malarial) fevers and other diseases. As the 19th century European empires expanded in Africa and Asia, control of tropical diseases such as malaria was seen as crucial. Consequently, quinine and cinchona became a pivotal tool of British, French, German and Dutch empire-builders. This comparative study shows how the interplay between science, industry and government resulted in different historical trajectories for cinchona and quinine in the Dutch and British Empires during the second half of the 19th century. We argue that in the Dutch case the vectors of assemblage that provided the institutional and physical framework for communication, exchange and control represent an early example of commodification of colonial science. Furthermore, both historical trajectories show how the employment of the laboratory as a new device materialised within the colonial context of agricultural and industrial production of raw materials (cinchona bark), semi-finished product (quinine sulphate) and plant-based medicines like quinine. Hence, illustrating the 19th century transition from 'colonial botany' and 'green imperialism' to what we conceptualise as 'colonial agro-industrialism'.

The Botanic Mission to Mozambique (1942-1948): contributions to knowledge of the medicinal flora of Mozambique.

This article reviews the historical and scientific findings of the Botanic Mission to Mozambique (1942-1948) under the Tropical Botanic Garden of the Instituto de Investigação Científica Tropical, in Lisbon, highlighting the collectors' field notes with the aim of identifying the traditional medicinal uses of Mozambican flora. Having collated information on 71 taxa (70 species and one genus), the medicinal usage of 34 species presumably not yet reported in Mozambique was identified, including five whose therapeutic use still had not yet been described in the African continent. Overall, 58 uses presumably not yet reported in Mozambique were recorded.

[Jakub Barner (1640-1683) and his Chymia philosophica (1698): side notes on the publication of the Polish translation]. / Jakub Barner (1640-1683) i jego Chemia filozoficzna (1698). na marginesie publikacji polskiego przekladu.

The translation of Chymiaphilosophica by Jakub Barner is the second publication in Polish historiography of a printed source work on early modem chemistry (alchemy) written by a Polish citizen, well known and influencial across Europe (the first such translation comprised the treatises of Michael Sendivogius). This admirable initiative of unquestionable value to Polish historians of science resulted in an elegantly published volume, with an extensive introduction and useful appendices. The language of the translation is pleasant to read, retaining the spirit of the original by means of a moderate use of archaisms and generally accurate selection of proper terminology. A closer comparison of some fragments of the translation reveals, however, that it omits essential words, phrases and even entire sentences. The translation itself is occasionally incorrect as well, completely changing the meaning of the author's text and distorting his intentions, thereby undermining the reliability of the Polish translation as a whole. In the factual layer, identifying both chemical substances and (especially) the names of the authors cited by Barner often appear to be doubtful or problematic. Apart from numerous obvious mistakes, as well as leaving many surnames unidentified even when it was very difficult, the translators and/or editors of the Polish text created some non-existent authors as a result of errors produced while copying their surnames from the original text or due to unfounded assumptions that some chemical or botanical terms are names of chemical authors. There is also no consistency in the spelling of surnames (usually left in the Latin form, sometimes spelled with wrong inflection, but also modernised). In the biographical introduction there are also numerous factual errors and some bizarre mistranslations. Not only did its author fail to correct invalid information of earlier biographers of Barner, relying only on the most obvious and accessible publications, but also perpetuated these "historiographical myths" and even created new ones. Neither did he consult any sources apart from some other of Barners published books. Writing from the positivist perspective and on the basis of outdated literature, he also sustained the categorical distinction between alchemy and chemistry, already rejected in contemporary historiography, thus presenting the role and position of Barner in the history of science not quite adequately. If one adds to that the very numerous "typos" throughout the book, it may be regarded as a negative example of poor source editing in almost every respect, even though it makes a pleasant reading.

On New Spain and Mexican medicinal botany in cardiology.

Towards the middle of the XVI century, the empirical physician Martín de la Cruz, in New Spain, compiled a catalogue of the local medicinal herbs and plants, which was translated into Latin by Juan Badiano, professor at the Franciscan college of Tlatelolco. On his side, Dr. Francisco Hernández, the royal physician (protomédico) from 1571 until 1577, performed a systematic study of the flora and fauna in this period. His notes and designs were not published at that time, but two epitomes of Hernández' works appeared, respectively, in 1615 in Mexico and in 1651 in Rome. During the XVIII century, two Spanish scientific expeditions arrived to these lands. They were led, respectively, by the Spanish naturalist Martín Sessé and the Italian seaman, Alessandro Malaspina di Mulazzo, dependent from the Spanish Government. These expeditions collected and carried rich scientific material to Spain. At the end of that century, the Franciscan friar Juan Navarro depicted and described several Mexican medicinal plants in the fifth volume of his botanic work. In the last years of the colonial period, the fundamental works of Humboldt and Bonpland on the geographic distribution of the American plants were published. In the modern age, the first research about the Mexican medicinal botany was performed in the laboratory of the Instituto Médico Nacional [National Medical Institute] under the leadership of Dr. Fernando Altamirano, who started pharmacological studies in this country. Later, trials of cardiovascular pharmacology were performed in the small laboratories of the cardiological unit at the General Hospital of Mexico City, on Dr. Ignacio Chávez' initiative. The Mexican botanical-pharmacological tradition persists alive and vigorous at the Instituto Nacional de Cardiología and other scientific institutions of the country.

A Missão Botânica de Moçambique (1942-1948): contribuições para o conhecimento da flora medicinal de Moçambique / The Botanic Mission to Mozambique (1942-1948): contributions to knowledge of the medicinal flora of Mozambique

O artigo revisita o espólio histórico-científico aduzido pela Missão Botânica de Moçambique (1942-1948) à guarda do Jardim Botânico Tropical do Instituto de Investigação Científica Tropical (Lisboa), destacando os cadernos de campo dos seus coletores, com o objetivo de identificar os usos medicinais tradicionais da flora moçambicana. Tendo-se coligido informação relativa a 71 taxa (setenta espécies e um género), identificou-se a utilização medicinal de 34 espécies presumivelmente ainda não reportada para Moçambique, entre as quais, cinco cujo uso terapêutico ainda não havia sido atribuído ao continente africano. No total registaram-se 58 utilizações presumivelmente ainda não relatadas em Moçambique.

This article reviews the historical and scientific findings of the Botanic Mission to Mozambique (1942-1948) under the Tropical Botanic Garden of the Instituto de Investigação Científica Tropical, in Lisbon, highlighting the collectors’ field notes with the aim of identifying the traditional medicinal uses of Mozambican flora. Having collated information on 71 taxa (70 species and one genus), the medicinal usage of 34 species presumably not yet reported in Mozambique was identified, including five whose therapeutic use still had not yet been described in the African continent. Overall, 58 uses presumably not yet reported in Mozambique were recorded.

Tripterygium wilfordii Hook. f. - how a traditional Taiwanese medicinal plant found its way to the West.

Tripterygium wilfordii is regarded as a promising traditional medicinal plant showing several, mainly antiinflammatory and cytotoxic activities. It contains unusal natural products currently under investigation as lead compounds. The species has been well known in Traditional Chinese Medicine but was recognized in Western science as an insecticide not before the 1930's and as a promising medicinal plant in the 1960's. The name refers to Charles Wilford, employed as a botanical collector at Kew Botanical Gardens, London from 1857-1860. He collected the plant on the island of Taiwan, formerly called Formosa, in June 1858, unfortunately without reporting its medicinal use in the country of origin. The plant was named according to the Linnaean system before 1862 what initially concealed its medicinal properties which had to be re-discovered in the second half of the 20th century.

Entre Oriente y Occidente: los Coloquios de García de Orta y la circulación del conocimiento médico en el siglo XVI / Between East and West: Garcia de Orta’s Colloquies and the Circulation of Medical Knowledge in the Sixteenth Century

This paper analyses the importance of Garcia de Orta’s Colloquies on the simples and drugs of India (Goa, 1563) in the construction and circulation of Asian botanical and medical knowledge in the sixteenth century. It begins by examining the combined importance of experience and testimony in Orta’s assessment of materia medica from India. It then considers the relevance of interaction and exchange of medical systems between the West and the East in the Portuguese physician’s understanding of medical knowledge and practices. Finally, it analyses how medical and botanical information provided by this work was reframed by Carolus Clusius and circulated in new forms in Europe (AU)

En este artículo se analiza la importancia de los Coloquios sobre los medicamentos simples y drogas de la India [Colóquios sobre os simples e drogas da Índia] (Goa, 1563) de Garcia de Orta en la construcción y circulación del conocimiento médico y botánico en Asia en el siglo XVI. Se comienza examinando la importancia combinada de la experiencia y el testimonio en la evaluación de Orta sobre la materia medica de la India. A continuación se examina la importancia de la interacción y el intercambio de los sistemas médicos entre Occidente y Oriente en la comprensión del médico portugués sobre las prácticas y conocimientos médicos. Por último, se analiza como la información médica y botánica que ofrece este trabajo fue reformulada por Carolus Clusius y distribuida en una nueva forma en Europa (AU)