Printed herbals are extremely complex objects that are important in different contexts—they belong to the history of medicine; marked the early history of botanics; had a strong impact in the history of ideas; and they functioned as a sort of laboratory for the development of the (modern) book. To reveal the manifold aspects of the herbals featured in Seeds of Knowledge: Early Modern Illustrated Herbals, guest curator Michael Jakob moderates a discussion with Gary R. Hilderbrand, Chair, Department of Landscape Architecture, Harvard Graduate School of Design, and Jeffrey Schnapp, Chair, Department of Comparative Literature, Harvard University. They will discuss the identity of the herbal and their impact on the understanding of the natural world.
The exhibition Seeds of Knowledge: Early Modern Illustrated Herbals will be open at 5:30 PM for program attendees.
Otto Brunfels, Herbarum vivae eicones (Strasbourg: Johann Schott, 1531). Peter Goop Collection. Photography by Naomi Wenger.