Monkey and the Inkpot: Natural History and Its Transformations in Early Modern China
| AUTHOR | Nappi, Carla |
| PUBLISHER | Harvard University Press (10/01/2009) |
| PRODUCT TYPE | Hardcover (Hardcover) |
Description
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.
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Product Format
Product Details
ISBN-13:
9780674035294
ISBN-10:
0674035291
Binding:
Hardback or Cased Book (Sewn)
Content Language:
English
More Product Details
Page Count:
250
Carton Quantity:
24
Product Dimensions:
6.43 x 0.88 x 9.38 inches
Weight:
1.13 pound(s)
Feature Codes:
Bibliography,
Index,
Dust Cover,
Price on Product,
Table of Contents,
Glossary
Country of Origin:
US
Subject Information
BISAC Categories
History | Asia - China
History | History
History | Alternative & Complementary Medicine
Dewey Decimal:
508.095
Library of Congress Control Number:
2009009041
Descriptions, Reviews, Etc.
publisher marketing
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.
Show More
Your Price
$59.40