Cristóvão da Costa (botanist)

Cristóbal Acosta, Cristóvão port. da Costa (* 1515 in the Cape Verde Islands, † 1594 in Huelva) was a Portuguese physician and botanist. He is considered a pioneer in the study of plants of the Orient, particularly their use in medicine. Its official botanical author abbreviation is " C.Acosta ".

Life

His father was a born in Portugal Jew who had emigrated in 1497, probably an attachment North Africa. Most likely Cristóbal Acosta was born in the Cape Verde Islands or in one of the Portuguese possessions in Africa. Through its education and training is not known.

He wrote in 1578 that Tractado de las drogas y medicinas de las Indias orientales in Latin, containing observations on oriental drugs. Another notable work was the Tractado de la Yerbas, plantas, frutas y animales, but this scripture is considered lost.

Cristóbal Acosta traveled to the East Indies for the first time in 1550 as a soldier. He participated in several campaigns against the indigenous population and was taken in one of them caught and imprisoned in Bengal. After his return to Portugal, he joined his former captain, Luiz de Ataide, to which had been appointed Viceroy of India. He returned in 1568 to Goa in India back. 1569 he was appointed physician to the Royal Hospital in Cochin. In 1571 he was known as a collector of plants from different parts of India. As Ataides service in 1572 ended, he returned to Portugal.

From 1576 to 1587 he served as a surgeon and later physician in Burgos. When his wife died, he took his leave and retired to a hermitage. He died in Huelva, Spain.

The crater Acosta on the Moon was named in his honor.

Works (selection)

• Tractado de las drogas y medicinas de las Indias orientales, Burgos 1578th online
• Aromatum et medicamentorum in orientali India nascertium. Antwerp 1582. Online
• Trattato ... della historia, natura, et vir delle droghe medicinali, & altri semplici rarissimi, che vengono portati dalle Indie ORIENTALI in Europe. Venice 1585th online
• Tratado en loor de las mugeres. Venice 1592 online

Literature (selection )

• Ruy de Mascarenhas Leiria: Cristovão da Costa, médico Hispano- portugues: revisão da sua naturalidade because sua época e sua formação salmantina. Madrid 1995 ISBN 978-84-920016-3-7
• Harry Friedenwald: The Jews and Medicine: Essays. Baltimore, 1944.
• Umberto Giulio Paoli: Cristobal Acosta e le sue opere. In: Archeion 19 (1937 ), pp. 317-347.
• Isidore Simon, Acosta, Christobal. In: Encyclopaedia Judaica, 2nd edition, Volume 1, Detroit / New York, among others 2007, ISBN 978-0-02-865929-9, pp. 258-359 (English)