Confalonieri Prints in Treviso

Treviso held ties to Venice during the 13th century and was home to some of the early printers during the Italian Renaissance. It is here that Bartolomeo Confalonieri prints the first copies of Theophrastus's Historia plantarum, which layed the foundation for the study of botany. These prints could now find their way around Italy and Europe; exposing scholars like Leonardo da Vinci to Theophrastus's research.

Parent Map

da Vinci and the Renaissance Map

Coordinates

Latitude: 45.666889300000
Longitude: 12.243043700000

Timeline of Events Associated with Confalonieri Prints in Treviso

Date Event Manage
1483

Confalonieri prints the first copies of Theophrastus's Historia plantarum

Theophrastus (371 - 287 BC) was a student of Aristotle and is attributed with the title as the father of botany. Theophrastus wrote books on botany such Enquiry into Plants and On the Causes of Plants. In these books, he worked to categorize plants into the groups, study their uses and how to grow them and took note on the anatomy of plants. Based on Theophrastus work we can see how early botanical study revolved around the idea of the usefulness of the plant and trying to create basic distinctions between different plant types. Bartolomeo Confalonieri was the first to print Theophrastus's books in 1483 while in Treviso which allowed much of Europe to learn about his findings. Though it is not known for sure, Theophrastus writing would have been available prior to Leonardo's observations of plants and could have been read by the artist.