Museum für medizinhistorische Bücher Muri

Name: Museum für medizinhistorische Bücher Muri
Address: Marktstrasse 4, Muri, 5630, CH
Telephone: +41566647011

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Museum für medizinhistorische Bücher Muri

“A fascinating journey through time”

The broad spectrum of books on display ranges from 1480 to 1800 and includes magnificent anatomical volumes, herbal books and natural history encyclopaedias. Recipes for the production of remedies and instructions for surgical procedures are just as much part of the natural knowledge of the time as unicorns or dragons. The interactive touchscreens allow visitors, regardless of their previous knowl

edge, to actively browse through the works and make their own discoveries. The current special exhibition "Growth, Herbals in the Renaissance" sheds light on the enormous development that took place thanks to the possibilities of book printing.

04/09/2026

September Picnic or important antidote?

The illustration shows a snake and someone sitting at the table. The person is actually busy preparing Theriac, which is an important mix of medical ingredients used for many potions. The flesh of the snake tyrus, a viper, is used to make up this concoction and also its name, the text informs us.

The woodcuts of this incunabula (meaning when book printing began in Europe around before 1500) are reduced to clear shapes. The texts give an insight to the view of nature and medical culture in the Middle Ages.

PLATE CXLVI
ORTUS SANITATIS DE HERBIS ET PLANTIS
ANONYMOUS
1497

28/08/2026

It seems quite clear that this is either the Eryngium maritimum or the Eryngium campestre – named Ringio here… it could be a Venetian local naming?

Which one are you going for – maritime or field? Or neither?

Plate 24
“Ringio” (Eryngium ?)
Venetian Manuscript
Ca 1500

21/08/2026

Sorting beastly creatures…
for the next special exhibition. Be prepared…
Conrad Gessner (1516-1565) and his “fish book” will feature…

Gessner became famous through his natural history and linguistic works, but primarily through his animal books, the „Historia animalium“. His aim was to capture the „immeasurable realm of creation“ as completely as possible in word and image with this multi-volume work.

Page 40
CONRAD GESSNER
NOMENCLATOR AQUATILIUM ANIMANTIUM
1560

14/08/2026

Summer time! And hot! Seems looking at posts over the years it is always when it is hot that I try and find another dragonfly to post…it seems the cool colours and knowing they can be found near water make me think of a nice swim.

“Discourses on Natural History”, all in all 25 Volumes, comprise texts with the accompaniment of a wealth of copperplates. The pastor G.T. Wilhelm (1758-1811) collected the latest literature of Natural History findings and then conveyed those in an objective yet entertaining way.

In the spirit of the Enlightenment, Wilhelm turns against superstition, calls for respect towards other cultures and wishes for a careful handling of animals and plants.

GOTTLIEB TOBIAS WILHELM, UNTERHALTUNGEN AUS DER
NATURGESCHICHTE, ÜBER DIE INSECTEN ZWEITER THEIL, PLATE IV,
AUGSBURG 1799

07/08/2026

Today I would like to say a big thank you to all followers. The aim of this account was in the spirit of the owner: to share the beautiful book collection with everyone who is interested. The museum was set up with free entrance and social media helps carry into the wider world.

It had to be Kniphof to celebrate: here some favourites.

Johann Hieronymus Kniphof
Botanica In Originali

Halle 1758- 1761

31/07/2026

Caterpillars don’t just eat everything!

Whilst this flower might be the thing to make you stop and look – it is actually the caterpillar that is the theme here. Maria Sibylla Merian observes that some caterpillars seem to be able to survive only when eating from one single type of plant, whilst others can feed from various types.
Look closely at the tiny catterpillars next to the eggs and the moth!

Ever since her childhood, Maria Sibylla Merian (1647-1717) dedicated her life and work to caterpillars and their mysterious transformation. The paths that she embarked upon with such passion were unconventional for a woman from the 17th century. As a researcher she enriched Natural History with new findings, and as an artist she captured her observations in magnificent illustrations.
The “Caterpillar Book” of 1679 follows her previous “Flower Books”. It is her first scientific work.

Plate 46, «Jacea moschata purpurea» flower
Maria Sibylla Merian
Der Raupen wunderbare Verwandelung und sonderbare Blumen-nahrung
Nürnberg, J. A. Graff 1679

On display

24/07/2026

…Violas flower all through summer…, can be used in a compound to help coughing (Hieronymus Bock, 1565)

Bock‘s herbal initially consisted only of text. It was cheaper to produce but harder to sell. For later editions, the young artist David Kandel (1527-1587) was engaged. The accuracy of Bock‘s texts in combination with Kandel‘s illustrations made the book a popular longseller.

Viola
Hieronymus Bock
Kreutterbuch (Herbal)
1565

17/07/2026

Staying home this summer?

There is a little collection of fish put together for you to enjoy even if you do not have access to water…

Conrad Gessner’s „Nomenclator Aquatilium Animantium“, which translates as „Nomenclature of the Aquatic Animals“, appeared in 1560 as a revision of his fourth „Animal Book“, the Latin fish book. Gessner(1516-1565), who lived in the Swiss town of Zürich, had limited experience of sea fish, (though he did actually visit Venice). He worked and relied on approximately 500 publications to help him describe sea dwellers. In parallel he sent a search list of the dwellers’ names to his scholarly network in order to obtain the corresponding illustrations. He did not fail to list and thank the various reporters that made his widely read compilation possible.

PAGE 16 & 17, Various Fish
CONRAD GESSNER
NOMENCLATOR AQUATILIUM ANIMANTIUM
1560

10/07/2026

…”Another lovely illustration of a type of crab in its apartment or house.…” (Conrad Gessner, 1560)

And if you spend the summer near a beach…have a look out at all the beautiful cratures.

Conrad Gessner (1516-65), who lived in the Swiss town of Zürich, had limited experience of sea dwellers. He worked and relied on approximately 500 publications to help him describe sea dwellers. Conrad Gessner’s „Nomenclator Aquatilium Animantium“, which translates as „Nomenclature of the Aquatic Animals“, appeared in 1560 as a revision of his fourth „Animal Book“, the Latin fish book.

CRAB
CONRAD GESSNER
NOMENCLATOR AQUATILIUM ANIMANTIUM1560

03/07/2026

Gentle in black and white

Sometimes looking at the non-coloured versions of botanical works make me appreciate the immense care taken to reflect the character of the plant by the artist.

Tussilago Farfara
William Woodville (1752-1805)
Medical Botany Band 1
First Edition, 1790
Illustrations by James Sowerby (1757-1822)

Adresse

Marktstrasse 4
Muri
5630

Telefon

+41566647011

Webseite

http://mmbm.ch/

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