A collection of 3,000 distinct species defined the seven-year scientific mission of Francisco Hernández de Toledo in the New World. As a court physician to King Philip II of Spain, he bridged medieval medical traditions with Renaissance observation, creating a foundational taxonomy that documented vanilla, cacao, and corn for a European audience.
Formative Education and Early Practice
Born in 1515 in La Puebla de Montalbán, Hernández studied medicine at the University of Alcalá, earning his bachelor's degree in 1536. His early career included serving the Duke of Maqueda and practicing medicine in Seville. Between 1556 and 1560, he managed the botanical garden at the Hospital y Monasterio de Guadalupe, where he participated in anatomical dissections. During his subsequent time in Toledo and Madrid, he engaged with established medical thought by penning commentaries on Hippocrates and Galen and translating Pliny’s Natural History.
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In 1570, King Philip II appointed Hernández to conduct an unprecedented scientific survey of medicinal plants and animals in the New World. Over seven years, he traveled extensively with his son Juan, documenting thousands of specimens. Assisted by indigenous painters—Antón, Baltazar Elías, and Pedro Vázquez—he recorded native names in Nahuatl. During a 1576 epidemic, he collaborated with Alonso López de Hinojosos and Juan de la Fuente at the Hospital Real de San José de los Naturales to study the pathology of cocoliztli.
Documentation and Dissemination
Hernández organized his findings into 22 volumes, initially delivering 16 leather-bound manuscripts to the crown. His work bypassed rigid classical categories, favoring descriptive detail for items like cacti, tobacco, and tomatoes. Although his original revised manuscript was destroyed in the 1671 Escorial library fire, his observations reached European scientists via the Accademia de Lincei. Influential editions included the 1615 Plantas y Animales de la Nueva Espana and the 1648 Nova plantarum, animalium et mineralium mexicanorum historia.
Fast facts
- Born: 1515, La Puebla de Montalbán
- Died: 1587, Madrid
- Education: University of Alcalá
- Position: Royal physician to Philip II
- Scientific mission duration: 1570-1577
- Indigenous artists: Antón, Baltazar Elías, Pedro Vázquez
Questions readers ask
What specific New World crops did Hernández document?
He provided some of the earliest written accounts of vanilla, corn, cacao, tobacco, chilis, tomatoes, and various cacti.
Why were many of his original manuscripts lost?
Many original copies, including a revised version containing over 2,000 pages of plant illustrations, were destroyed in a fire at the Escorial library on July 17, 1671.
Achievements
- Educated at University of Alcalá
