The “Natural History of Portugal” by Leonhard Thurneysser zum Thurn, ca. 1555-1556
Keywords:
Thurneysser, Damião de Góis, Natural History, 16th Century Pharmacology, Black People in Lisbon, Medicinal Plants
Abstract
The existence of a German manuscript by Leonhard Thurneysser from Basel, started in 1555 “in the house of the noble lord and Lusitanian knight Master Damiani de Goes”, had fallen into the oblivion of historians for several decades. It contains reports on a number of plants and animals observed by the author during his stay in Portugal. Another very curious aspect is his description of the black Africans he met in Lisbon. In spite of the text being written in early-modern high German, most of the names of the vegetal or animal species are mentioned in Portuguese. A project for a complete transcription of the extensive text is in progress.
