CHAPTER IIl (Part 4)

some, however, were borrowed from de ’Ecluse and de I’Obel. This arose from the fact that Plantin was also the publisher for both these writers, and as he bore the expense of their blocks, he had an agreement with the three authors that their illustrations should be treated as common property. A few of Dodoens’ figures were based upon those in the famous manuscript of Dioscorides, now at Vienna (see pp. 8, 85, 154). ag In the ‘ Pemptades,’ the botanist in Dodoens was more to the fore, and the physician less in evidence than in his earlier work. It is particularly difficult to appraise with any exactness the services which Dodoens rendered to botany. Between him and his two younger countrymen, de !’Ecluse and de |’Obel, there was so intimate a friendship that they freely imparted their observations to one another, and per- mitted the use of them, and also of their figures, in one another’s books. To attempt to ascertain exactly what degree of merit should be attributed to each of the three, would be a task equally difficult and thankless. Charles de l’Ecluse [or Clusius"] (Plate VII) was born at Arras in the French Netherlands in 1526; like Dodoens, he passed the closing years of his life at Leyden. He studied at Louvain, and other universities, including Mont- pelier, where he came under the influence of the botanist, Guillaume Rondelet, who also numbered d’Aléchamps, de l’Obel, Pierre Pena and Jean Bauhin among his pupils. De l’Ecluse was an enthusiastic adherent of the reformed 1 The fullest and most correct form of his name is probably “‘ Jules-Charles de l’Escluse.” Plate VII CHARLES DE WECLUSE (1526—1609). [Print in the Botany School, Cambridge.] yw 4 » * Tee ae! 2 ee ee Iv] The Herbal in the Netherlands 75 faith, to which he was converted by the influence of Melanch- thon, and he suffered religious persecution, which brought even actual martyrdom to some of his relatives. Though he did not himself lose his life, he was deprived of his property, Anemone trifolia. =— Meh eae =2G Ff Ss i" Text-fig. 38. “Anemone trifolia” [Dodoens, Pemptades, 1583]. and, between poverty and ill-health, his career seems to have been a melancholy one. He passed a nomad existence, attached at one time as tutor to some great family, while, 76 The Botanical Renatssance [CH. at others, he was occupied in writing or translating for Rondelet, Dodoens or Plantin, or undertaking precarious employment at the court of Vienna. The University of Leyden finally appointed him to a professorship. It ts interesting to note that he paid more than one visit to England, and that he was intimate with Sir Francis Drake, who gave him plants from the New World. De l’Ecluse had a reputation for versatility scarcely exceeded by that of his contemporary, the “ Admirable” Crichton. He is said to have had a wide knowledge of Latin, Greek, French, German, Flemish, Spanish, law, philosophy, history, geography, zoology, mineralogy and numismatics, besides his chosen subject of botany. Since his botanical début was made as the translator of Dodoens, we may with reason look upon him as a disciple of the latter. The first original work de l’Ecluse produced was an account of the plants which he had observed while on an adventurous expedition to Spain and Portugal with two pupils. This was so successful botanically that he brought back two hundred new species. The description of his finds was published by Plantin in 1576, under the title of ‘Rariorum aliquot stirpium per Hispanias observatarum Historia. Wood-blocks were engraved purposely for this book (see Text-figs. 39, 59 and 98), but, for the confusion of the bibliographer, some of them were also used to illustrate Dodoens’ work in the interval while the Spanish flora of de l’Ecluse awaited publication. In 1583 appeared our author’s second work, which did the same service for the botany of Austria and Hungary as the previous volume had done for the botany of Spain. These two works, together with some additional matter, were republished in 1601 as the ‘ Rariorum plantarum historia.’ In this book, the species belonging to the same genus are often brought together, but, beyond this, there is little attempt at sys- tematic arrangement. De l’Ecluse was weak in the synthetic faculty, his strength lying rather in his powers of observation. Cuvier reckons that he added more than six hundred to the number of known plants. It is characteristic of his versatile mind, that his botanical interests were not confined, like those of most of the early workers, to flowering plants. A IV] Lhe Herbal in the Netherlands a7 manuscript is preserved in the Leyden Library’ containing more than eighty beautiful water-colour drawings of fungi, Text-fig. 39. “Lacryma Iob”=Coir lachryma-Jobi L., Job’s Tears [de l’Ecluse, Rariorum...per Hispanias, 1576]. executed under the direction of de l’Ecluse, by artists employed by his great friend and patron, Baron Boldizsér * University Library, Leyden, Department of Manuscripts, Codex No. 303. 78 The Botanical Renatssance [cH. de Batthyany. This gentleman is said to have been so enthusiastic a botanist, that he set a Turkish prisoner at liberty, on the condition that he should obtain plants for him from, Turkey. De I’Ecluse seems to have been a man of wide friend- ships, and his botanical correspondence was very large. He did much for horticulture, and is called by his friend, Marie de Brimen, Princesse de Chimay, ‘‘le pere de tous les beaux Jardins de ce pays.” He deserves especial gratitude for one benefit of a very practical nature, namely the introduction of the Potato into Germany and Austria. It is worthy of note that de I’Ecluse, unlike the majority of the herbalists, was not a physician, and although he laid considerable stress on the properties of plants, he was not preoccupied with the medical side of the subject. He studied plants for their own sake, and abandoned the futile effort to identify them with those mentioned by the ancients. The third of the trio of botanists whom we are now considering is Mathias de I’Obel [de Lobel or Lobelius], who was born in Flanders in 1538, and died in England, at Highgate, in 1616 (Plate VIII). He studied at Mont- pelier, under Guillaume Rondelet, who, finally, bequeathed to him his botanical manuscripts. Here also he became acquainted with a young Provengal, Pierre Pena, with whom he afterwards collaborated in botanical work. De I’Obel took up medicine as his profession, and eventually became physician to William the Silent, a post which he held until the assassination of the Stadtholder. Later on, he and Pena came to England, probably to seek a peaceful life under the prosperous sway of Queen Elizabeth, which was so favour- able to the arts and sciences. Their principal work was dedicated to her, in terms of hyperbolic praise. De l’Obel seems to have been well received in this country, for he was invited to superintend the medicinal garden at Hackney, belonging to Lord Zouche, and he eventually obtained the title of Botanist to James I. De |’Obel’s chief botanical work was the ‘Stirpium adversaria nova’, published in 1570, with Pena as joint author. Pena does not appear to have been a botanist 1 According to Legré, the word “Adversaria” is equivalent to “livre-journal,” i.e. day-book in the commercial sense. Plate VITT MATHIAS DE LOBEL (1538—1616). [Engraving by Francois Dellarame, 1615. Department of Prints and Drawings, British Museum. ] 4 j | | fas : ’ Pree? | Hi Di on awe ee ‘ ty * - IV] The Herbal in Italy 79 of much importance, and he eventually quite forsook the subject in favour of medicine. It has been suggested, however, that de I’Obel was inclined to minimise the value of his colleague’s work. The system of classification, upon which de I’Obel’s reputation really rests, is set forth in this book. The main feature of his scheme is that he distinguishes different groups by the peculiarities of their leaves. He is thus led to make a rough separation between the classes which we now call Dicotyledons and. Monoco- tyledons. The details of his system will be considered in a later chapter. In 1576 the work was enlarged, and republished as the ‘Plantarum seu Stirpium Historia’; it was also translated into Flemish, and appeared under the title of ‘ Kruydtboeck ’ in 1581, dedicated to William of Orange, and the Burgo- masters and other functionaries of Antwerp. The blocks (see Text-fig. 67) used to illustrate this work were taken from previous books, especially those of de I’Ecluse. Imme- diately after the publication of the Kruydtbceck, Plantin brought out an album of the engravings it had contained, which, although they had been also used to illustrate the herbals of Dodoens and de |’Ecluse, were now grouped according to de l’Obel’s arrangement, which was recognised as the best. 3. THe HERBAL In ITALY. The Italian botanists of the Renaissance devoted them- selves chiefly to interpreting the works of the classical writers on Natural History, and to the identification of the plants to which they referred. This came about quite naturally, from the fact that the Mediterranean flora, which they saw around them, was actually that with which the writers in quéstion had been, in their day, familiar. The botanists of southern Europe were not compelled, as were those whose homes lay north of the Alps, to distort facts before they could make the plants of their native country fit into the procrustean bed of classical descriptions. One of the chief of the commentators and herbalists of this period was Pierandrea Mattioli [or Matthiolus] (Text- fig. 40), who was born at Siena in 1501, and died of the 80 The Botanical Renatssance [cH. plague in 1577. We realise something of the frightful extent of this scourge, when we remember that it claimed as victims no less than three of the small company of Renais- sance botanists, Gesner, Mattioli and Zaluzian. Leonhard Fuchs was brought into fame by his successful treatment of one of these epidemics. It should also be recalled that, Text-fig. 40. Pierandrea Mattioli, 1501—1577 [Engraving by Philippe Galle. Virorum Doctorum Effigies, Antwerp, 1572]. while Gaspard Bauhin, one of the best known of the later herbalists, was practising as a physician at Basle, no less than three of these terrible outbreaks occurred in the town. Mattioli was the son of a doctor, and his early life was passed in Venice, where his father was in practice. He was IV] Lhe Herbal in Italy SI destined for the law, but his inherited tastes led him away from jurisprudence to medicine. He practised in several different towns, and became physician, successively, to the Archduke Ferdinand, and to the Emperor Maximilian II. Pyra. i i wi Led / vi Rs ") ih ines iY] ~ ull eeijil N) eel Om IT) 1. ry Ll 3 Zs We 4, (FEST F Y <i, Ms i : te OTT) iy} Say VAL Wii Le uy J Elias 9 Text-fig. 41. “Pyra”=Pyrus communis on rear [Mattioli, Commentarii, 1560]. Mattioli’s ‘Commentarii in sex libros Pedacij Dios- coridis, his chef-d’euvre, the gradual production and im- provement of which occupied his leisure hours throughout his life, was first published in 1544. A. It was translated into 6 82 The Botanical Renaissance [CH. many languages and appeared in countless editions. The success of the work was phenomenal, and it is said that 32,000 copies of the earlier editions were sold. The title does not do the book justice, for it contains, besides an Auena. LRT il Nah NY Text-fig. 42. “Avena”=Oats [Mattioli, Commentarii, 1560]. exposition of Dioscorides, a Natural History dealing with all the plants known to Mattioli. The early editions had small illustrations only (Text-figs. 41, 42, 93 and 94), but, later on, editions with large and very beautiful figures were Iv] Lhe Flerbal in Italy 33 published, such as that which appeared at Venice in 1565 (Text-figs. 43, 44, 95). | Mattioli’s descriptions of the plants with which he deals are not so good as those of some of his contemporaries. om RA. Text-fig. 43. “Trifolium acetosum”=Ovalis [Mattioli, Commentarii, 1565]. Reduced. He found and recorded a certain number of new plants, especially from the Tyrol, but most of the species, which he described for the first time, were not his own discoveries, 6—2 84 The Botanical Renatssance [cH. but were communicated to him by others. Luca Ghini, for instance, had projected a similar work, but handed over all his material to Mattioli, who also placed on record the NUIT. Ni Ml Text-fig. 44. “ Malus”=Pyrus malus L., Apple [Mattioli, Com- mentarli, 1565]. Reduced. discoveries made by the physician, Wilhelm Quakelbeen, who had accompanied the celebrated diplomatist, Auger- Gislain Busbecq, on a mission to Turkey. 1v] The Herbal in Italy 8c Busbecq brought from Constantinople a wonderful col- lection of Greek manuscripts, including Juliana Anicia’s copy of the Materia Medica of Dioscorides, now in the Vienna Library (see pp. 8 and 154). He discovered this great manuscript in the hands of a Jew, who required a hundred ducats for it. This price was almost prohibitive, but Busbecq was an enthusiast, and he successfully urged the Emperor, whose representative he was, ‘‘to redeem so illustrious an author from that servitude.” His purpose in buying the manuscript seems to have been largely in order to commu- nicate it to Mattioli, who would thus be able to make use of it in preparing his Commentaries on Dioscorides. The personal character of Mattioli does not appear to have been a pleasant one. He engaged in numerous con- troversies with his fellow botanists, and hurled the most abusive language at those who ventured to criticise him. Another Italian herbalist, Castor Durante, slightly later in date than Mattioli, should perhaps be mentioned here, not because of the intrinsic value of his work, but because of its widespread popularity. At least two of his books appeared in many editions and translations. Durante was a physician who issued a series of botanical compilations, bedizened with Latin verse. The best known of his works is the ‘ Herbario Nuovo,’ published at Rome in 1585 (lext-figs. 45..and 103)... .second book, the original version of which is seldom met with, has survived in the form of a German translation, by Peter Uffenbach. The German version was named ‘ Hortulus Sanitatis.’ As an illustration of Durante’s charmingly -unscientific manner, we may take the legend of the ‘Arbor tristis” which occurs in both these works. The figure which accompanies it (Text-fig. 45) shows, beneath the moon and stars, a drawing of a tree whose trunk has a human form. The description, as it occurs in the ‘ Hortulus Sanitatis,’ may be translated as follows : “Of this tree the Indians say, there was once a very 1 “quem ego emptum cupivissem, sed me deterruit pretium: nam centum ducatis indicabatur, summa ceesarei non mei marsupii. Ego instare non desinam donec czesarem impulero ut tam preeclarum autorem ex illa servitute redimat.” as 3 p. 392. [Quoted by Kickx, Bull. Acad. roy. Bruxelles, Vol. Vv. p. 202, 1838.]: 86 The Botanical Renaissance (cH. beautiful maiden, daughter of a mighty lord called Parisa- taccho. This maiden loved the Sun, but the Sun forsook her because he loved another. So, being scorned by the Sun, she slew herself, and when her body had been burned, according to the custom of that land, this tree sprang from her ashes. And this is the reason why the flowers of this tree shrink so intensely from the Sun, and never open in his presence. And thus it is a special delight to see this tree in the night time, adorned on all sides with its lovely flowers, since they give forth a delicious perfume, the like of which is not to be met with in any other plant, but no Text-fig. 45. “Arbor Malenconico” or “ Arbor tristis” = Tree of Sorrow [Durante, Herbario Nuovo, 1585]. sooner does one touch the plant with one’s hand than its sweet scent vanishes away. And however beautiful the tree has appeared, and however sweetly it has bloomed at night, directly the Sun rises in the morning it not only fades but all its branches look as though they were withered and dead.” Much more famous than Durante was Fabio Colonna, or, as he is more generally called, Fabius Columna (Plate IX), who was born at Naples in 1567. His father was a well-known littérateur. Fabio Colonna’s profession was cp IV LJ The Herbal in Italy 37 2 Gee GRICE D EEE COND) COMICS HD ea e -& 699 3 — ot a ’ SAD = ne py fae So) >" 1S A rer i) Agar FO Sian ¥ “Ke z ERIE CERT LY, CEH CoM SEI CESS COR FEMP CEB SD UT TI TN a ERD GENER EER CAV AED ERD EINER? COBTEBY GEXSa CR HII AD C59) (epg CELE HD [SIDS END SENSED Eopdd CHD CEN ERD COED | Text-fig. 46. “Apocynum” [Colonna, Phytobasanos, 1592]. 88 The Botanical Renaissance (cu. that of law, but he was also well acquainted with languages, music, mathematics and optics. He tells us in the preface to his principal work that his interest in plants was aroused by his difficulty in obtaining a remedy for epilepsy, a disease from which he suffered. Having tried all sorts of pre- scriptions without result, he examined the literature on the subject, and discovered that most of the writers of his time merely served up the results obtained by the ancients, often in a very incorrect form. So he went to the fountain head, Dioscorides, and after much research identified Valerian as being the herb which that writer had recommended against epilepsy, and succeeded in curing himself by its use. This experience convinced Colonna that the knowledge of the identity of the plants described by the ancients was in a most unsatisfactory condition, and he set himself to produce a work which should remedy this state of things. This book was published in 1592,