Li Shizhen
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Li Shizhen (July 3, 1518 – 1593), courtesy name Dongbi, was a Chinese acupuncturist, herbalist, naturalist, pharmacologist, physician, and writer of the Ming dynasty. He is the author of a 27-year work, the Compendium of Materia Medica (Bencao Gangmu; Chinese: 本草綱目).
Li Shizhen was a Chinese scholar of the Ming dynasty (1368–1644) who compiled a highly influential materia medica, the Bencao gangmu (Compendium of Materia Medica), which described 1,892 drugs and presented directions for preparing some 11,000 prescriptions. Completed in 1578, the book was in part.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Learn about Li Shizhen (1518–1593), a famous medical scholar who wrote the Bencao Gangmu, a comprehensive encyclopedia of natural medicine. Discover his life, achievements, background and legacy in this travel guide.
Though virtually unknown in mainstream American culture, Li Shizhen (lee sher-jen) is virtually a household name in China. A kind of patron saint of Chinese herbal medicine, widely lauded by historians and practitioners of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), he is widely represented in popular and scholarly media.
Jun 8, 2020 · TCM is fiercely defended by many in China, and is a source of national pride and cultural identity. Li Shizhen’s book is a symbol of that pride, a reminder of how extensive and wide-ranging Chinese medical investigation had become by the 16th century.
Feb 2, 2021 · Li Shizhen lived during the Ming Dynasty of China in the 16th century. He was a pioneer of medicine in the late Ming and early Qing dynasties who compiled a masterpiece to set standards for the identification, quality, strength, and purity of medicinal substances, the Compendium of Materia Medica, a task that took him nearly 30 years to complete.
Ben Cao Gang Mu (《本草纲目》 (Compendium of Materia Medica)) is is the most complete and comprehensive medical book ever written in the history of traditional Chinese medicine. Compiled and written by LI Shi-zhen (1518~1593), a medical expert of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) over a period of 27 years.
