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Botany in the Renaissance
During the 16th century, the Renaissance focus on understanding reality led to a revival of the study of nature, with interest in the fields of botany and anatomy growing rapidly. Artists of the Renaissance sought to better understand their subjects in the world around them, and thus studied the structures, functions, and habits of plants extensively. The medicine of the 15th and 16th centuries emphasized the use of herbal remedies, and thus physicians were often the foremost botanists of the. Books on botany also began to appear, with some of the botanical figures of the 16th century considered among the best ever produced.
Early Beginnings of Botany
Botany first flowered in Germany in the early 16th century. Otto Brunfels, considered one of the “Fathers of Botany,” was the first to produce a major work on plants. However, when he attempted to compare his findings to those of the Greeks and Romans, it was unsuccessful due to geographic difference, and caused confusion among his followers. The most remarkable German botanist of the early period was Leonhart Fuchs. Fuchs produced a guide to collecting medical plants that is considered a landmark in the history of natural observation, illustrated by highly accurate woodcut prints. However, Fuchs did little work concerning plant geography or classification, which he left to his followers.
Advancements in Anatomy
Many of the same trends that led to the development of botany led the study of anatomy as well. The founder of modern anatomy was Andreas Vesalius of Belgium. At the time, the works of the Greek physician Galen were standard in Europe, but Vesalius questioned Galen's authority. When he became professor in Padua, Italy in 1537 he immediately instituted sweeping reforms in the study of anatomy with a hands-on style of instruction and study. He also published On the Fabric of the Human Body in 1543 at the age of 28, considered the first great modern work of science and the foundation of modern biology. Vesalius’s drawings and descriptions of muscles are so accurate and unique that modern scientists return to them even today.
Roots of the Scientific Revolution in the Renaissance
The beginnings of the Scientific Revolution owe much to the spirit of inquiry that arose during the Renaissance. When revisiting the works of the ancient thinkers, botanical studies of the ancient period were unearthed, which immediately provoked interest in comparison. Additionally, the quest for realism in Renaissance art led to the study of plant and animal structures, as artists labored to better comprehend the forms and functions of their subjects. The rise and spread of printing during the Renaissance played a further part in garnering interest in the physical world, as students of nature could publish and circulate their observations and theories throughout Europe. The Renaissance awakening to the great beauty and diversity of nature led to the scientific study of that beauty and variety.
Limits of Ancient Knowledge
Despite advances, botany was still shackled by the same restrictions that commonly inhibited the advancement of science during the early Scientific Revolution. Though the revival of botany was owed in part to the study of the ancient botanists, that same reliance on the ancients for authority was quite damaging to the field. If Otto Brunfels had not attempted to compare his work so closely to the work of the ancient Greeks and Romans, his findings would have been far more lucid and his followers could have moved forward in the field. However, he could not break from the influence of the ancients, and the result was confusion, in his own works and for his followers.
Changing Attitudes Towards Ancient Knowledge
However, attitudes toward traditional authority were changing during the early years of the Scientific Revolution. Andreas Vesalius’s disregarding of Galen’s authority is one example of this. People were no longer content to rely on ancient authority for the truth. Instead, they sought to do their own observation, and their own experimentation, in order to see for themselves what the truth might actually be. Vesalius was not alone in this emotion. He was simply an early member of a long line of scientists and philosophers who would see the works of the ancients not as unquestionable authorities, but rather as a foundation and guide for future progress.
