Travels of European botanists of the 16th-18th centuries in search of Mediterranean plants described by Dioscorides and Theophrastus

European botanists of the 16th to 18th centuries faced significant challenges in accurately identifying plants described by ancient authors Dioscorides and Theophrastus, due to insufficient descriptions and inconsistent nomenclature. To address this, they embarked on expeditions to the Eastern Mediterranean, where these plants were native, aiming to see them in their natural habitats. These journeys, particularly Leonhard Rauwolf's well-documented expedition, provided crucial insights that eventually led to precise identifications of many ancient plant species. The research highlights how botanical expeditions, such as those by Anguillara and Guilandinus—early prefects of the Padua Botanical Garden—and later Sibthorp’s Flora Graeca, contributed significantly to modern botany by bridging the gap between ancient descriptions and contemporary knowledge.

Minelli, A. (2025). Travels of European botanists of the 16th-18th centuries in search of Mediterranean plants described by Dioscorides and Theophrastus. Webbia, 80(1), 5–13. https://doi.org/10.36253/jopt-17353