Course Description: We will read and translate together selected ornithological entries from Francisco Hernández de Toledo’s Thesaurus, a massive, richly illustrated Latin account of the author’s seven years in Mexico. Dispatched in 1570 from the court of Philip II to explore the New World’s medicinal resources, Hernández far exceeded his charge, producing an exhaustive catalogue of Mexico’s natural riches based on his own observations and on information gathered from experienced Nahua informants. His report is fascinating at the merely factual level, comprising the first descriptions of many American organisms; at the same time, the Thesaurus is an important document in the early modern confrontation of the new, empirical science of nature and the humanistic, compilatory tradition of such great predecessors as Gesner and Aldrovandi.
DETAILS
Level: Intermediate Latin reading ability required.
Textbook: Instructor will provide materials.
Sections capped at: 5 students. If the course is sold-out, please fill out this waiting-list form.
When
February 26, 28; March 1, 11, 13, 25, 27, 29; April 1, 3. 7p.m. U.S. Eastern Time
Cost
$250
Course has already past.
