Botany in the Middle Ages, 700-1449
Overview
The ancient Greeks, especially Aristotle (384-322 B.C.) and his pupil Theophrastus (c.370-285 B.C.), made important contributions to botany, the study of plants, but there were few significant additions to that body of knowledge by the Romans. All this knowledge was lost to Europeans after the fall of Rome in 476, when Europe settled into a period called the Dark Ages during which there was little attention to science. This period lasted until about A.D. 1000 when a curiosity about the natural world began to increase slowly. Interest was spurred by the translation of Greek and Roman texts into Latin so that the learning of the ancients again became available in Europe. This meant that by the mid-fifteenth century when movable type was invented, the stage had been set for the reemergence of science in the Renaissance.
Background
During the Dark Ages, economic and social conditions were such that the energies of most people went totally into struggling through life from day to day. There was no time or energy left for scholarly pursuits. Also, the influence of the Church was predominant during this time. This religious focus meant that people paid more attention to preparing for the next life than investigating the present world around them.
This page contains 201 words.
Botany in the Middle Ages, 700-1449 article
Read the rest of this article.
This article contains 1,749 words
(approx. 6 pages at 300 words per page).
Order our Botany Article
