TRACES OF NATURE IN TIME – THE CZECH LANDS

TRACES OF NATURE IN TIME – THE CZECH LANDS

In the Czech Lands, the first herbals appear already in the fifteenth century. They were mostly written in Latin (e.g. the Herbarius by Christian of Prachatice, published in 1416). An important milestone was the Czech-written herbal of Jan Černý (approx. 1456–1530), whose Knieha lékarská, kteráž slove herbář aneb zelinář (A medical book called also a herbal or plant guide; 1517) was intended mainly for the poorer strata of society, those who had to rely on home remedies. The work of Pietro Andrea Mattioli (1500–1577 or 1578) was translated into many European languages and became famous all-around Europe.

In the sixteenth to eighteenth century, herbals and herbaria were – in connection with a dynamic development of natural sciences – intensively compiled and created all around Europe. In the Czech Lands, the production of herbals and herbaria was extraordinarily varied and reflected not only scientific advances but also the cultural atmosphere and interest in collecting that was characteristic of society at that time. Early Modern encyclopaedic herbals, which aimed at encompassing most known plants, were gradually replaced by specialised works focused on, for instance, particular families or locations. At the same time, herbaria with their dried specimens became an important instrument of botanical research: they were used not only at universities and in museums but appeared also in the private collections of plant collectors. Herbaria and herbals thus played a role not only in science but also in culture. Plant collecting became a popular activity among scholars, teachers, and the lay public, who viewed it as a way of bringing together nature, education, and aesthetics. Herbaria and herbals also served as practical guides for treatments, and even European nobility took note. In our territory, an important personage in this respect was Count Kaspar Maria of Sternberg (1761–1838), one of the foremost Czech naturalists of the nineteenth century. During his lifetime, Sternberg amassed vast collections of herbaria items, which laid the foundations to collections of the National Museum, which he had co-founded.