About This Item
Title
De mandragora
Subject
Plants, Medicinal
Mandragora
Book Illustrations
Incunabula
Description
Woodcut printed by Pierre Le Caron, artist unknown.
Mandragora (Mandragora officinarum), commonly known as mandrake. The root of mandrake was said to grow resembling either a male or female form. Here it is depicted with a female figure.
Source
Original image in: Grant herbier (Imprime a Paris : par Pierre Le Caron, [ca. 1498-1500]). ZYa 16 1498 (Historical Medical Library of The College of Physicians of Philadelphia)
Le Grant Herbier was the first major herbal printed in French. The anonymous text, first printed ca. 1486-1488, borrowed 264 of its 474 chapters from an earlier work, Circa instans, and also based its illustrations on woodcuts from Gart der Gesundheit. The College’s copy, the 3rd printed edition, ca. 1498-1500, contains 308 woodcut illustrations of plants, along with a few animals, identified with Latin headings. Due to limitations of the illustrations, along with variations in nomenclature, it is difficult to determine the precise identity of each plant with certainty.
Publisher
Digitized by the Historical Medical Library of The College of Physicians of Philadelphia
Date
1498?
Contributor
Le Caron, Pierre, active 1488-approximately 1500
Type
StillImage
Identifier
ZYa_16_1498.m3vb
Original Format
1 print : woodcut
Physical Dimensions
7 x 6 cm
Citation
“De mandragora,” The College of Physicians of Philadelphia Digital Library, accessed December 28, 2024, https://cppdigitallibrary.org/items/show/1121.