By Dr. Frederick Meyer (deceased) and Jo Sellers

(Editor’s Note: The complete article was originally published in The Herb Society of America’s The Herbarist, 1999.)

In 1967, the Potomac Unit of The Herb Society of America initiated a project to publish a facsimile of one of the most significant herbals of the sixteenth century, De historia stirpium, or History of Plants, published by Leonhart Fuchs in 1542. The work, titled The Great Herbal of Leonhart Fuchs (De historia stirpium commentarii insignes) consists of two volumes. Volume one is an interpretive commentary based on three decades of research by the late Dr. Frederick Meyer, the late Dr. Emily Emmart Trueblood, and the late Dr. John L. Heller. Volume two is a facsimile of the Latin edition of the herbal.

At its inception, the project was under the leadership of Dr. Trueblood, a Potomac Unit member noted for her publication of the Badianus Manuscript, an Aztec herbal written in 1552, translated from Latin into English. As originally planned, Volume I was to include a life of Fuchs, a translation of Fuchs’ introduction, the contents of the herbal, and the botanical names for the woodblock figures of the plants in the herbal.

To help Dr. Trueblood, Dr. Meyer, a retired botanist at the U.S. National Arboretum, was invited as a consultant and advisor on botanical matters. After Dr. Trueblood suffered a heart attack and stroke making it impossible for her to continue, Dr. Meyer assumed full responsibility for the project. He was assisted by Dr. Heller, a Latinist and expert on Linnaeus at the University of Illinois, and with the continued support of the Potomac Unit members, the project moved forward. The sixteenth century was a period during which herbalism flourished and the illustrated herbal reached its maximum development. Of all the fine herbals that appeared at that time, the monumental work of Leonhart Fuchs, a folio with 511 beautiful woodcuts of plants, was one of the finest. The herbal was both an important medical document and a history of botany that enjoyed wide popularity throughout Europe for a long period. The last commentary on the herbal was published in France in 1862.

Leonhart Fuchs, born in Bavaria in 1501, became one of the leading physicians of Europe. As a Renaissance humanist, philologist, Greek and Latin scholar, administrator, professor, and author, he may be considered the equal of Copernicus and Vesalius. In addition to his great herbal that went through 39 imprints during his lifetime (including German, French, Dutch, and Spanish translations), Fuchs published about 20 books on Galen and Hippocrates, and his anatomy treatise was second only to that of Vesalius. Fuchs was professor of medicine at the University of Tubingen for 35 years and was rector of the same university seven times. In addition to his writing and teaching responsibilities, he had a private medical practice and was father of ten children. He admonished medical men of his day for their botanical ignorance, writing that “one can find scarcely one in a hundred who has an accurate knowledge of even a few plants.”

Evidence of his skill as a field botanist is found throughout his herbal. To illustrate his great herbal, Fuchs retained three artists. Albrecht Meyer drew the plants from life; Heinrich Füllmaurer transferred the drawings to the woodblocks; and Viet Rudolf Speckle did the cutting of the wood blocks. The illustrations produced by these artists, praised for their “simple elegance and naturalness of form” are among the finest produced in any sixteenth-century herbal. Of the many books authored by Fuchs, De historia stirpium was unquestionably his greatest love, his magnum opus. The fine printing and methodical layout, the organization of the subject matter, and the elegant illustrations make the herbal a real treasure.

There are many reasons for the significance of the Fuchs herbal. It is the first treatise on plants that can be called scientific. As one of the German fathers of botany, Fuchs is considered one of the founders of the sixteenth-century plant iconography. The 511 illustrations, all drawn from living specimens and nearly all identifiable to species, are a starting point for modern taxonomic botany, more than 200 years before Linnaeus. Fuchs’ illustrations were extensively borrowed, copied, or adapted for more than 458 years. Because of the excellence of the illustrations, it was possible to make the first accurate identification of many medicinal plants known from earlier periods. Many of the figures may be considered as historic types of plants figured by Fuchs and later accepted by Linnaeus. More than 100 plants are illustrated for the first time, including chile pepper, corn, French marigold, pumpkin, and kidney bean. The foxglove, a well-known cardiac plant, was first named and depicted by Fuchs in 1542.

Fuchs aimed to include the complete history of every plant illustrated in the herbal, and for this reason, more than 40 Greek, Latin, and post-Roman authors were cited as sources for plant names. He also drew information on medicinal uses from the leading ancient sources, especially Dioscorides, Pliny, and Galen. Fuchs, himself, contributed additional information on medicinal use derived from local sources, which he included in a special appendix. The herbal also contained the first published glossary of botanical terms. An English translation is included in the new publication.

Scholars have praised the herbal of Fuchs as one of the most significant landmarks of pre-Linnaean herbal-botanical literature. [This] publication, The Great Herbal of Leonhart Fuchs, will be of value for scholars and students interested in the history of botany, medicine, pharmacy, Renaissance history, history of science, gardeners, herbalists, and others. Today, [over four and a half centuries] after De historia stirpium was published, it still has relevance as a medical reference. Over 80% of the plants illustrated in Fuchs’ herbal have relevance as medicaments in modern medicinal usage.

Medicinal Disclaimer: It is the policy of The Herb Society of America, Inc. not to advise or recommend herbs for medicinal or health use. This information is intended for educational purposes only and should not be considered as a recommendation or an endorsement of any particular medical or health treatment. Please consult a health care provider before pursuing any herbal treatments.

Photo Credits: 1) Renaissance painting of Leonhart Fuchs by Heinrich Füllmaurer (Public Domain); 2) Inside cover of De historia stirpium (Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation, Carnegie Mellon University); 3) Illustration of Heinrich Füllmaurer and Albrecht Meyer (Glasgow University Library); 4) Botanical illustration of Capsicum (Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation, Carnegie Mellon University); 5) Botanical illustration of Acanthus (Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation, Carnegie Mellon University).

Dr. Frederick Meyer was a member of The Herb Society of America. An accomplished botanist, Dr. Meyer was both widely traveled and widely published. He wrote many taxonomic articles and books, including on the flora of Japan, the flora of Chile and the Juan Fernandes Islands, as well as publications on the cultivated plants of Europe. He studied the plants of Tierra del Fuego, as well as the ancient plants of Pompeii, and was the first to collect and study the cultivated plants growing along the Riviera in southern France.

Jo Sellers is an active member of the Potomac Unit of The Herb Society of America. She has served in various capacities for HSA, the National Capital Area Federation of Garden Clubs, and the National Council of State Garden clubs. During her career, Jo was a fourth-grade teacher in Virginia where she incorporated herbs and herb gardening in her outreach efforts. She continues to learn and teach about herbs every chance she gets.