Encyclopedia of Early Modern History Online

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Plant
(1,888 words)

1. Plants and human beings

Even though crop plants like grain, fruit, and vegetables in agriculture and horticulture contribute directly to the livelihood of human societies, their symbolic and cultural significance is less prominent than that of animals. Since antiquity, the notion of plants as “inverted animals” (with their roots as their “heads” and their leaves as external respiratory organs) embodied the f…

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Müller-Wille, Staffan and Ingensiep, Hans Werner, “Plant”, in: Encyclopedia of Early Modern History Online, Editors of the English edition: Graeme Dunphy, Andrew Gow. Original German Edition: Enzyklopädie der Neuzeit. Im Auftrag des Kulturwissenschaftlichen Instituts (Essen) und in Verbindung mit den Fachherausgebern herausgegeben von Friedrich Jaeger. Copyright © J.B. Metzlersche Verlagsbuchhandlung und Carl Ernst Poeschel Verlag GmbH 2005–2012. Consulted online on 01 December 2023 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/2352-0272_emho_COM_031102>
First published online: 2015
First print edition: 20200721



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