豆瓣日記：360年前波蘭人眼中的中國動植物 How a Polish Viewed Chinese Animals and Plants in 17th Century

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《中國植物志》出版於350年前的維也納，是第一本關於中國 (遠東) 的歐洲自然史書籍。作者卜彌格身處的時代，看中國的動植物，大約就像一個外星人來到地球寫觀察報告吧！ Flora Sinensis is one of the first European natural history books about China, published in Vienna in 1656. In that era, when Michael Boym, the author saw and described Chinese plants and animals, its approximately like an alien came to Earth to write observations!

反波羅蜜，印度人稱為鳳梨（Ananas），據說是從巴西被引入印度的 Pineapple botanical from Flora Sinensis, Fructus Floresque Humillime Porrigens, originally from Brazil:

亞大樹（番荔枝），原產印度和馬六甲 Annona squamosa (Custard Apple), originated from India and Melaka:

柿餅樹 Flora Sinensis, fructus floresque Humillime Porrigens:

卜彌格，是一名來自波蘭的耶穌會傳教士。卜彌格的這本書是歐洲發表的第一本關於遠東自然環境的書籍。《中國植物志》繪製了二十種植物和八種動物，共二十三幅插圖。Michael Boym, was a Jesuit missionary from Poland. The book was the first description of an ecosystem of the Far East published in Europe, including 20 plants and 8 animals.

無名果樹, 主根扎在土中，而在其他露在外面的根上長出紅色的花和形似歐洲無花果的果實, 真實的名字是喃喃豆 Fructus innominat, (its real name is Cynometra cauliflora):

反椰樹，印度人稱為木瓜 (Papaya) Flora Sinensis, fructus floresque Humillime Porrigen:

荔枝 Lychee botanical from Flora Sinensis, Fructus Floresque Humillime Porrigens, Vienna, 1656:

有些學者認為，卜彌格是第一個採用「植物志」這個名稱的科學家。儘管書名如此，這本不僅涵蓋植物。事實上，它顯然包括一些物種既不是植物，也不來自中國!　It is said that the Flora Sinensis was the first book that used the name "Flora" in this meaning, a book covering the plant world of a region. However, despite its title, the book covered not only plants. In fact, it obviously includes some species that are neither plants nor Chinese!

中國植物志中的插圖 Illustration from Michal Boym"s Flora Sinensis:

芒果，印度人稱為曼佳果（Manga） Flora Sinensis, fructus floresque Humillime Porrigens:

太黃，在四川、陝西和毗鄰中國長城的肅州（Socieu）產量特別高 (馬可波羅把肅州稱為Socuir) Rhabarbarum, large output in Sichuan, Shanxi and Socieu (which Marco Polo called it Socuir):

這本書還包括為天主教中國皇帝請命，並且每一頁都包含指向 1655 年匈牙利皇帝利奧波德加冕典禮日期的時間表，目的是為了題獻給他，獲取自己繼續在中國傳教的經費。（只要是光怪陸離，能打動匈牙利皇帝，想必卜彌格在書中加入幾種動物也可以吧。）The book also included pleas for support of the Catholic Chinese emperor and each page contained a chronogram pointing to the date of 1655, the date of coronation of Emperor Leopold I as the King of Hungary, as Boym wanted to gain support of that monarch for his mission. (In order to catch Hungarian emperor"s attention, Boym included strange animals of the Far East in the book.)

中國有種最美麗的鳥，在唐王山上築巢（可能在與Pervino接壤的遼東省）。它從人們的面前消失被視作王室的凶兆 Most beautiful birds of China, they nest on Tang Wang mountain (possibly in Liaoning province, border with Pervino). It"s considered as a bad omen, if a Funi hoam disappeared in front of people:

麝，來自一種中國人叫做香（Hiam）的動物，和蚺毒，一種南方常見的無毒的蛇 Muscus and a type of snake commonly seen in southern China:

產自中國的松鼠，和綠毛龜，後者的飛足因其稀少而在中國奇貨可居，綠毛龜腳上附有綠色（有時是藍色）的翅膀。它腳步遲緩，但可以通過張開腳上的翅膀飛翔（確切地說是跳躍）來彌補 Squirrel chasing a Green-haired Turtle (1656) taken from Flora Sinensis at Bibliothèque, Green-haired Turtle moves slowly, but that can be mended up by flying/hopping with "wings" on its feet:

海馬，牙齒被證實可以止血，卜彌格在莫三比克所見，印度所聞 Hay ma, should be hippopotamus, according to Boym, its teeth were proven to stop bleeding, he saw "Hay ma" in Mozambique of Africa, heard legends in India:

*卜彌格（Micha? Boym，1612年-1659年），波蘭籍科學家、探險家和天主教耶穌會傳教士，生於利沃夫（今屬烏克蘭）。他是最早進中國大陸的西方人之一，寫了數本中國動植物、醫藥和地理的書：《中國地圖冊》、《中國植物志》、《中國地圖冊》、《中國醫藥概說》、《中國診脈秘法》。並且是兩本字典的作者：一本漢語拉丁語字典和一本漢法字典。Micha? Piotr Boym (Chinese: 卜彌格; c. 1612–1659) was a Polish scientist, explorer and a Jesuit missionary to China. He is notable as one of the first westerners to travel within the Chinese mainland, and the author of numerous works on Asian fauna, flora and geography. Boym authored the first ever published Chinese dictionaries for European languages: a Chinese–Latin dictionary and a Chinese–French dictionary.

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