Herbal of Pietro Andrea Mattioli, extracts from an edition of Dioscorides De re medicaassembled and illustrated by Gherardo Cibo

Gherardo Cibo was an Italian naturalist, who made this visual diary to record his plant-collecting excursions. Cibo was widely praised for his observations and detailed coloured drawings of plants. Unlike other botanists, who employed artists, he did his own illustrations. This page shows two men collecting specimens on an Italian hillside, equipped with a sickle and a sack. Cibo also noted the location, day and hour when his herbs were gathered. Shown here: ff. 2v–3r