The Monkey and the Inkpot : Natural History and Its Transformations in Early Modern China

This is the story of a Chinese doctor, his book, and the creatures that danced within its pages. The Monkey and the Inkpot introduces natural history in sixteenth-century China through the iconic Bencao gangmu (Systematic materia medica) of Li Shizhen (1518–1593). The encyclopedic Bencao gangmu is widely lauded as a classic embodiment of pre-modern Chinese medical thought. In the first book-length study in English of Li’s text, Carla Nappi reveals a “cabinet of curiosities” of gems, beasts, and oddities whose author was devoted to using natural history to guide the application of natural and artificial objects as medical drugs. Nappi examines the making of facts and weighing of evidence in a massive collection where tales of wildmen and dragons were recorded alongside recipes for ginseng and peonies. Nappi challenges the idea of a monolithic tradition of Chinese herbal medicine by showing the importance of debate and disagreement in early modern scholarly and medical culture. The Monkey and the Inkpot also illuminates the modern fate of a book that continues to shape alternative healing practices, global pharmaceutical markets, and Chinese culture. (20100401)

This is the story of a Chinese doctor, his book, and the creatures that danced within its pages. The Monkey and the Inkpot introduces natural history in sixteenth-century China through the iconic Bencao gangmu (Systematic materia medica) of Li Shizhen (1518–1593).

The encyclopedic Bencao gangmu is widely lauded as a classic embodiment of pre-modern Chinese medical thought. In the first book-length study in English of Li’s text, Carla Nappi reveals a “cabinet of curiosities” of gems, beasts, and oddities whose author was devoted to using natural history to guide the application of natural and artificial objects as medical drugs. Nappi examines the making of facts and weighing of evidence in a massive collection where tales of wildmen and dragons were recorded alongside recipes for ginseng and peonies.

Nappi challenges the idea of a monolithic tradition of Chinese herbal medicine by showing the importance of debate and disagreement in early modern scholarly and medical culture. The Monkey and the Inkpot also illuminates the modern fate of a book that continues to shape alternative healing practices, global pharmaceutical markets, and Chinese culture.

Steve Moore - Fortean Times

This first book-length treatment of the [Bencao Gangmu] in English contains a great deal of interest and is undoubtedly a major contribution to its field.

"This is the story of a Chinese doctor, his book, and the creatures that danced within its pages. The Monkey and the Inkpot introduces natural history in sixteenth-century China through the iconic Bencao gangmu (Systematic materia medica) of Li Shizhen (1518-1593)." "The encyclopedic Bencao gangmu is widely lauded as a classic embodiment of pre-modern Chinese medical thought. In the first book-length study in English of Li's text, Carla Nappi reveals a "cabinet of curiosities" of gems, beasts, and oddities whose author was devoted to using natural history to guide the application of natural and artificial objects as medical drugs. Nappi examines the making of facts and weighing of evidence in a massive collection where tales of wildmen and dragons were recorded alongside recipes for ginseng and peonies." "Nappi challenges the idea of a monolithic tradition of Chinese herbal medicine by showing the importance of debate and disagreement in early modern scholarly and medical culture. The Monkey and the Inkpot also illuminates the modern fate of a book that continues to shape alternative healing practices, global pharmaceutical markets, and Chinese culture."--Jacket. Contents ......Page 6 List of Illustrations......Page 8 Ex-Voto......Page 10 Note on Conversions......Page 14 Prologue: A Curious Instinct, A Taste for Ink......Page 18 1. Conception: Birth of a Naturalist......Page 29 2. Generation: Anatomy of a Naturalist......Page 50 INTERLUDE: Here Be Dragons: A Reader’s Guide to the Bencao gangmu......Page 67 3. Transformation: Elements of Change......Page 86 4. Transformation: Sprouts of Change......Page 100 5. Transformation: Bodies of Change......Page 113 6. Transformation: Creatures of Change......Page 128 Conclusion: Rot and Rebirth: The Afterlife and Reincarnation of a Naturalist......Page 153 Appendix A: Li Shizhen, Lidai zhujia bencao [Bencao works through the ages]......Page 168 Appendix B: Contents of the Bencao gangmu [Systematic materia medica]......Page 172 Notes......Page 176 Glossary of Chinese Characters......Page 224 Index......Page 246 Contents 6 List of Illustrations 8 Ex-Voto 10 Note on Conversions 14 Prologue: A Curious Instinct, A Taste for Ink 18 1. Conception: Birth of a Naturalist 29 2. Generation: Anatomy of a Naturalist 50 INTERLUDE: Here Be Dragons: A Reader’s Guide to the Bencao gangmu 67 3. Transformation: Elements of Change 86 4. Transformation: Sprouts of Change 100 5. Transformation: Bodies of Change 113 6. Transformation: Creatures of Change 128 Conclusion: Rot and Rebirth: The Afterlife and Reincarnation of a Naturalist 153 Appendix A: Li Shizhen, Lidai zhujia bencao [Bencao works through the ages] 168 Appendix B: Contents of the Bencao gangmu [Systematic materia medica] 172 Notes 176 Glossary of Chinese Characters 224 Index 246 0674035291,9780674035294 Harvard University Press