Pharmacology Using Plants and Herbs Project Page....Introduction....Dioscorides....Hildegard....Gerard....Conclusion This project has been a very interesting one. At first, it seemed a
bit daunting, but once I got into the research, it was so fascinating
and it really captured my attention. I am interested in plants and
herbs in the gardening aspect, and I think that (like mostly everyone
else) medicine is just an interesting topic to study. So I thought it
could be fun to learn about how plants and herbs were used as medicines
in the past. I had no idea what a vast field this topic would open me
up to. Prior to this semester, I could not have told you who
Dioscorides, Hildegard, or Gerard were. I now realize that the lack of
knowledge I had about printed herbals and their authors was really a
sad thing! Dioscorides was such an influential figure in the world of herbs, plants, and medicine. He was a surgeon in the army, and combined his medical knowledge and interest in plants to write the everlasting herbal, De Materia medica. His impressive work has not only thrived for centuries, but he basically invented the field of pharmacology. He studied things that no one before him had thought to study. After learning about Hildegard, I feel like she should be one of those female names that everyone recognizes, like Joan of Arc. She was an herbalist, but she was also very well known in religious circles for having visions from God. Her herbal, Physica, was part of a much larger volume of natural history. Physica is so interesting because it combines some of her own personal knowledge with things she learned from reading other herbals, like De Materia medica, along with traditional lore of her time. Physica gives us insight into the sometimes odd and strange remedies people believed in during her time, and it also allows us to understand how medicine might have been used in the clergy. John Gerard was another interesting figure who was obviously very knowledgeable about plants, even though the true contribution he made to Herball is questionable. The possible plagiarism on Gerard's part was very interesting to learn about, because as soon as I began reading about him, I just assumed her really had written Herball himself. It is only when you look a little bit deeper into the history of Herball that you realize its authorship should probably be owed to several men, and not just Gerard alone. Perhaps the most memorable part of this project for me was learning about Dioscorides, Hildegard, and Gerard as people. I didn't initially think I would take much time learning about the author behind the herbal. Rather, I thought I would focus all my attention on De Materia medica, Physica, and Herball. But it turns out that the history of the writer is just as important to the herbals as the words they contain. All three people I studied led remarkably interesting lives, and I wish I had known about them before this project. Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to read this project. I hope you've enjoyed learning about Dioscorides, Hildegard, Gerard, and their herbals as much as I did! Web Project by Samantha Aaron Email me |