Note 275 — LETTER IV. (continued 2)

Mattioli or Matthioli, an Italian physician, was one of the founders of modern botany. He was born at Siena in 1500, and died at Trent in 1577. He was educated at Venice and Padua, and afterwards lived at Siena and Rome, but was compelled by the sack of the latter city to retire to Trent, from which he removed to Goritz. In 1562 he was summoned by Ferdinand to his Court, where for ten years he was first physician to Maximilian. His most celebrated work is his Dioscorides and his Commentary on that author. In this he made especial use of two MSS. discovered at Constantinople by his intimate friend Busbecq, one of which is presently mentioned in the text.

Mattioli in his Commentaries, continually refers to the specimens and information he had received from Quacquelben, Busbecq’s physician. He gives a figure and description of the Acorus, the plant mentioned in the text, which Busbecq had had collected for him from the Lake of Nicomedia, and also mentions the Napellus under the head of Aconite. Apparently there were two species known by that name, one of which was extremely poisonous. Mattioli gives instances of experiments tried with it upon condemned criminals, some of which proved fatal. Mattioli also describes and gives figures of the horse-chestnut and lilac, taken from branches and seed sent him by Busbecq.

Quacquelben took advantage of the return of Busbecq’s colleagues in August 1557, to send Mattioli a box of specimens accompanied by a long letter, which, with Mattioli’s reply, is printed among the letters of the latter.