About this Item

Title:
Ben cao pin hui jing yao

Other Title:
本草品彙精要

Translated Title:
Collection of the Essential Medical Herbs of Materia Medica

Summary:
Ben cao pin hui jing yao was compiled and illustrated by imperial order of Emperor Xiaozong of the Ming dynasty (reigned 1487–1505). The manuscript was completed in 1505, the final year of his reign. It is considered the only officially produced materia medica work of its time. After the emperor’s death, the manuscript remained in the imperial court and was not printed for over four centuries, although some illustrated copies circulated.

The work was led by physician Liu Wentai, with contributions from other medical scholars and artists. It draws content from earlier texts such as Zheng lei ben cao, Qin shan zheng yao, and Shao xing ben cao. The encyclopedia consists of 42 juan and includes 1,815 medicinal substances grouped into 10 categories, along with 1,367 color illustrations.

The text covers identification, preparation, composition, and medicinal properties of substances, along with related cultural and environmental knowledge. Although some inconsistencies exist between illustrations and descriptions, the work is notable for its large number of new and detailed illustrations, especially of plants, animals, and everyday objects.

Names:
Liu Wentai (active 1505), compiler

Created / Published:
Place of publication not identified; publisher not identified, 1505.