St Louis College of Pharmacy - Prescripto Yearbook (St Louis, MO)

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1933 PR1nSCRIP'1'O Herbals IKE the other sciences, botany had its origin in practical human needs. Food, shelter, and clothing were the first objects that led men's attention to plants, and perhaps at the same time, the necessity of relief from pain and fatigue. In the latter instance, man perhaps found what he wanted in certain plants, and he became cognizant of drugs. The knowledge of medicinal plants for a long time remained traditional, being handed on from wise man to wise man of the tribe. 'It is at a compara- tively late time that we find any systematic attempt to preserve in a written form what had been accumulated during centuries without records. The-- ophrastus gathered all that could be learned about plants of all kinds in his time. The encyclopedic Pliny has preserved much of importance and interest to our generation, and we have in addition the mediaeval encyclopedists. But the works of these men are of general rather than special interest, and it is Dioscorides who first presents us with a comprehensive and systematic materia medica. The name herbal has been given to the type of book of which many were issued during the fifteenth, sixteenth, and seventeenth centuries. They contain descriptions, usually illustrated, of plants and animals employed in medicine, and were written by physicians for physicians. As their contents comprise, in the majority, plants, the name herbal is not improperly applied to them. The illustrations accompanying the descriptions of plants in these works are in themselves worthy of special study. They vary from the crudest, ahnost helpless representation to the finest design, which, while striving at accuracy, are also fitted to the finest decorative principle of fitting in significant form the space given to it on the page. In some cases they are colored, in others black and white, and it is in the latter that we find the most delicate artistic expression. The library of the Missouri Botanical Garden possesses one of the finest collections of herbals and other works on medical botany of the time preceding Linnaeus in the world. For the historian of medicine and pharmacy this col- lection, including the Sturtevant collection, is a library of incalculable impor- tance. If We had the space at command, we would expatiate at some length on the various treasures in this collection. As it is, we shall select for remark a few of the more celebrated. Herbarius Latimts, published at Mainz in 1484, by Peter Schoeifer. This is also known as the Herbarius in Latino, Herbarius Mogimtinus, Herbarius Patcwinus, and Latin H erbarius. This is divided into fifteen chapters on drugs, and an index to ninety-six drugs, all illustrated. The copy in the Garden is of the rare first edition, and apparently the only one in America. Later editions are in existence, but they are inferior to the first in point of typography. The work of Mace? Floridus. This work is interesting from the circum- stance that it is in verse, the author is not known, the name of Aemilius Macer being added in all probability in order to give the book a vogue. It was issued at Paris about 1490, and the copy is without mutilations. The virtues of seventy-seven drugs are extolled. The Hortus Scmitatis or Garden of Health, published at Mainz in 1491. The title was popular at one time, and this work is probably based on earlier ones. It describes a large number of plants-435 of them-and other articles found in apothecary shops of the time, and is rich in illustrations. Herbarium of Otto Brunfels, 1530. This work shows the great progress that had been made in the depiction of medicinal plants and in printing. The Page Seventy Sw:

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1933 PRESCRIPTO The Missouri Botanical Garden ....- . ff- ----F-MW-Y H -I .1 .. If . V. 9 N 1857, after much deliberation and a world-wide observation of plants and flowers in the various countries, Henry Shaw began to plan what is now the Missouri Botanical Garden. At the time, he little realized that it would one day rate with the leading botanical gardens of the world. This garden now exhibits as fine a variety of botanical displays as any person has ever had the opportunity to behold. Included are flowers and plants of all kinds and descriptions. A few years ago a garden for the growing of medicinal plants was established, so that students of medicine and pharmacy now have the opportunity of examining the objects of the vegetable materia medica in the living state. - Necessity of expansion has caused the development of a branch of the Missouri Botanical Garden at Gray's Summit, bordering the Meramec River. The writer has had the pleasure of visiting this branch, which at the time was displaying the most magnificent variety of orchids he has ever seen. This branch furnishes much of the material for the displays at the main garden in St. Louis. The Garden has a wonderful museum and library, the latter of which has been at our disposal for the purpose of obtaining material for our drug themes. The library has been fortunate in securing the Sturtevant Library, one of the most complete collections of old herbals and similar works in the world. The students of the College have spent many interesting days at the Garden and have gained much valuable information which they will not soon forget. Page Seventy Fwe

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