Cultural History of plants

What is it about?

This study focuses on botanical features gleaned from the literary source Hypnerotomachia Poliphili (1499); the analysis reveals that Hypnerotomachia Poliphili includes 285 botanical entities associated with 672 textual passages, which have not hitherto been reported. Roses, myrtle, pines, cypresses, laurel, acanthus, oaks, junipers, ivy, thyme, violets, sandalwoods and orange trees are the most frequently cited plants. Shrubs dominate with 43%, while herbs and trees follow with 28% and 26%, respectively. Arbutus, dittany, cypress, fig tree, labdanum, laurel, myrtle, oaks, oleander, wild and cultivated olive trees, oregano, pine, thyme, grapevines are associated with the diversity of Mediterranean ecosystems. In addition, numerous textual passages of Hypnerotomachia Poliphili mentioning flowering and fruiting plants reveal the seasonality of the Mediterranean region. Exotic plants, such as frankincense tree, myrrh, banana, pepper, sandalwood and jasmines are also included. Thorny plants, sharp thistles and cedars are cited in the text as occurring among ancient monuments and historical ruins. The botanical content of Hypnerotomachia Poliphili constitutes an alternate source of botanical observation, which includes historical, allegoric and symbolic information.

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Why is it important?

Hypnerotomachia Poliphili is a literary source that witnesses numerous botanical elements, presented as part of imaginary natural and human-induced landscapes, which have not been studied till now. The treatise provides evidence for the presence of 285 vernacular names of plants and natural plant products, retrieved from 672 different textual passages, which may be a source of contemporary knowledge of plants. Mediterranean shrubs and herbs, ornamentals, fruit-bearing trees and frankincense trees are the most frequently cited. It might be argued that the different frequencies of plants and plant products reflect their importance in daily life, at the time HP was written. Many plants quoted in the text have been presented as vehicles for expressing emotions, allegory, historical knowledge and environmental attributes, thus indicating links between botany and cultural history of plants. However, further work is required to reveal the heritage of the botanical section of Hypnerotomachia Poliphili. Hypnerotomachia Poliphili, which has been translated as “The strife of love in a dream” (in French Songe de Poliphile), is the short title of an influential book of the Renaissance. The original long title of this book in Latin has been translated into English as “Hypnerotomachia Poliphili in which it is shown that all human things are but a dream and many other things worthy of knowledge and memory”. The etymology of the invented term Hypnerotomachia is derived from three Greek words, i.e. hypnos (ὓπνος): sleep, eros (ἔρως): love, and mache (μάχη): strife. The term Poliphili (plural form of Poliphilos) is also of Greek origin, meaning beloved.

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