Herbals – Day 12

Welcome to 31 Days of Medieval Manuscripts, a month-long series introducing the fascinating and brilliant world of medieval illuminated manuscripts.
Serapion the Younger, Translation of the herbal (The ‘Carrara Herbal’), including the Liber agrega, Herbolario volgare; De medicamentis, with index (ff. 263-265) Italy, N. (Padua); between c. 1390 and 1404. (BL. Ms. Egerton 2020 f.4). Photo from The British Library Catalogue of Illuminated Manuscripts.

Herbals were exactly what they sound like – books about herbs. In the days before prescription or over-the-counter medicine, herbal remedies were common, and herbals illustrated and described the medicinal properties of various herbs. Not being too familiar with herbal medicine, I’m not sure how accurate these herbals were, but I certainly hope they were less fantastical than the bestiaries we talked about the other day. Unlike religious, royal, or scholarly manuscripts that were almost always written in Latin (the prestige language of medieval Europe), herbals might sometimes be written in languages like Old English or French.

Asphodel and garlic. Bartholomaei Mini de Senis; Platearius; Nicolaus of Salerno, Tractatus de herbis (Herbal); De Simplici Medicina ; Circa instans; Antidotarium Nicolai Italy, S. (Salerno); between c. 1280 and c. 1310 (BL. Ms. Egerton 747 f.5). Photo from The British Library Catalogue of Illuminated Manuscripts.

While perhaps not as colorful or decorative as those in most other manuscripts we’ve looked at in this series, the illustrations in herbals are still really beautiful – and certainly more faithful to their subject matter. After all, they were quite necessary. Since an important part of herbals was teaching people how to identify the plants being discussed, showing each one’s appearance with some degree of accuracy was crucial. That’s why the specimens are generally shown silhouetted against a neutral background, with the shapes of their leaves and flowers very clear. They remind me of the pressed flower books I used to make when I was little. Despite this, not all herbals are necessarily illustrated.

Detached leaf from a herbal. Italy, N. E., possibly Veneto. (BL. Ms. Add. 41996, f. 112v). Photo from The British Library Catalogue of Illuminated Manuscripts.

Herbals seem to be related to bestiaries, since both catalog and illustrate the natural world, and quite a few manuscripts contain both. Just like bestiaries, their texts could reference a number of different classical and medieval sources.

I was particularly intrigued by MS Harley 1585, which contains, according to the British Library’s online catalog entry, “Medical miscellany of a pharmacopeial compilation, including a herbal and bestiary illustrating the pharmocopeial properties of animals”. Click the link to view all of the manuscript on the British Library’s online Catalogue of Illuminated Manuscripts; the book includes illustrations of plants, animals real and fantastical, and medical procedures. The image below depicts plants and a centaur on the same page. I wonder what medicinal properties a centaur has!

Medical miscellany of a pharmacopeial compilation, including a herbal and bestiary illustrating the pharmocopeial properties of animals. Netherlands, S. (Mosan region), or England?, 3rd quarter of the 12th century. (BL. Ms. Harley 1585 f.21v-22). Photo from The British Library Catalogue of Illuminated Manuscripts.

After printing arrived in Europe, herbals formed the basis for the long-lived tradition of botanical prints/illustrations, which are still popular and collectible today.

Sources

  • https://herbariumworld.wordpress.com/2022/11/07/art-medieval-herbals/
  • https://www.textmanuscripts.com/medieval/herbal-60779
  • https://blogs.bl.uk/digitisedmanuscripts/2017/04/an-illustrated-old-english-herbal.html

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One response to “Herbals – Day 12”

  1. Herbals | Pearltrees

    […] Many of the earliest medical writings were herbals, which described plants and how they could be used to heal illnesses. Most of these written treatises likely began as traditional oral information, passed down from generation to generation, sometimes as wider cultural information and sometimes as secrets kept within families or small social groups. Theophrastus, De Historia Plantarum (Amsterdam: Hendrick Laurensz, 1644). Dioscorides, De Medicinali Materia (Paris: Henri Estienne, 1516). Michael J. Like this: Sloane 4016 BL. Herbals – Day Twelve of Medieval Manuscripts – A Scholarly Skater. […]

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