DEDICATORY EPISTLE OF LEONHART FUCHS

Therefore, since he Referring to Jean Ruel (Latin: Johannes Ruellius, 1474–1537), a French physician and botanist mentioned on the previous page. made such convenient use of the writings of others, and arranged them into a proper order, making them effectively his own, there was no reason for him to annoy his readers by constantly citing the names of the authors from whom he had borrowed each particular detail. Regarding those labors of Ruel, let others decide and judge as they wish; for I know how varied, and for the most part unjust, are the judgments many people hold concerning them. I, certainly, shall not be ashamed to openly admit that his commentaries have been of great use to me. However, we must not hide the fact that we disagree with him on more than one occasion; far be it from anyone to think that I approve of every single thing he determined regarding the nature of plants in those books. Yet, even if there are many things in Ruel’s commentaries that we do not approve of, his dedication should nonetheless be most welcome to us, as he achieved more than all those who preceded him in such great botanical darkness original: "rei herbariae caligine." Fuchs frequently uses metaphors of light and shadow to describe the "dark ages" of medieval science versus the "light" of the Renaissance.. But enough of Ruel, or perhaps I have said more than was necessary, especially since there is no shortage of his own countrymen—men both learned and eloquent—who can defend him in this cause far better than I.

Marcello Virgilio of Florence.

Let us move on, then, to Marcello Virgilio of Florence Marcello Virgilio Adriani (1464–1521) was a humanist scholar and chancellor of the Republic of Florence who translated Dioscorides., who after Ruel attempted to illuminate this part of medicine. Although he does not seem to have possessed a very great knowledge of herbs—seeing as he was not a physician by profession, and published his work at a time when herbal science lay covered in the thickest shadows—nevertheless, because he clarified many obscure and corrupted passages in Dioscorides and restored them to their former luster, his dedication and efforts ought to be approved by us for this reason alone. Nothing contributes as much to the correct understanding of Dioscorides and other authors as the integrity and purity of the manuscript copies. However, the fact that he sometimes wandered a bit too far from the words of Dioscorides, and did not grasp their legitimate and genuine meaning, is a fault he shares with other interpreters; they often strove to express and follow the sense of Pliny Pliny the Elder (23–79 AD), author of Natural History. Renaissance scholars often struggled to reconcile Pliny’s Latin descriptions with Dioscorides’ Greek ones. rather than that of Dioscorides.

Marcello is defended from slander.

As for the fact that some judge Marcello, the interpreter of Dioscorides, to be a mere grammarian In this period, "grammarian" (grammaticus) referred to a philologist or literary scholar rather than a scientist or doctor., I do not find much fault with that. But when they add that he was not sufficiently skilled in this art, they do so in their usual manner—appearing to rave and act madly in public—when they dare to judge so unfavorably and rashly this man and many others who have served literature and the medical art so well. Truly, I do not fear to assert with all confidence that even in such great darkness of all things, Marcello knew more plants and was more of a scholar than those today who do not fear to so impudently disparage his reputation and that of other learned men. But leaving aside foreigners for now, let us come to our own Germans—several good and learned men who have attempted, through their published writings, to bring light to herbal medicine and restore it, as it were, to its wholeness, so that we do not deprive them of their deserved praise. Among these, the first was

Otto Brunfels.

Otto Brunfels Otto Brunfels (1488–1534) was a German theologian and botanist. His Herbarum vivae eicones (1530) is considered a milestone because of its realistic illustrations., a man truly learned and quite industrious original: "φιλόπονος" (philoponos), a Greek term for one who loves labor or is extremely hardworking., who first in Latin, and then also in a German text, attempted to help and illustrate herbal medicine. Although many things are missing in his writings—such as the fact that the descriptions often do not match the pictures, that he produced very few and only common plants, and that he often did not call the herbs by their proper and legitimate names—nevertheless, he deserved to be praised by everyone for this single reason: he was the first of all to bring back to our Germany the correct method of painting plants from life, providing others with the opportunity to imitate him. As for the other things lacking in him, since he could not provide them for many reasons—chiefly because of the frequent and many troubles caused by his printer original: "typographi molestias." Early authors often complained that printers rushed them to finish work to meet trade fair deadlines., who insistently urged him on and hurried the edition (as he himself admits in a certain place in his "Vigils")—they deserve pardon. Why say more? Since it is clear that Brunfels was the first in our Germany who attempted to dig herbal medicine out of the thickest darkness when it was nearly extinct, he is certainly most worthy of pardon on this account, even if not everything turned out according to his wishes. For as the proverb says, "pardon is due to the first-trier" original: "συγγνώμη τῷ πρωτοπείρῳ" (syngnomē tō prōtopeirō), a Greek maxim meaning that pioneers should be forgiven for their mistakes.. Furthermore, since nothing was more desired by this excellent man than to be of the greatest use to posterity, he should be held in high regard by all students...