Plants have always been used for medical purpose.

In particular, during the Middle Ages they were cultivated in monasteries. During the 1500s botanical gardens developed - 1544 in Pisa, 1545 Padova, 1554 Firenze - and with them herbaria, collections aimed at botanical research, spread among Europe. The role of erbolari, with their botanical knowledge, was fundamental in collecting plants and studying them.

In the exhibition are presented some erbolari from Piemonte:

fra Bottalini, monk at Collegno Charterhouse
Francesco Peyrolery, who worked for decades at Torino Botanical Garden
Clarence Bicknell, passionate botanic who set up his museum in Bordighera at the end of the 1800s

However, the aim of this exhibition is to value the herbarium of Museo Tazzetti, curated by Enrico Peter Grande.

Bite-sized scientific information is conveyed on the evolution of plants and their capacity of adapting to varying conditions. Plants are not static and passive organisms: they have a long history of evolution, which allowed them to be present in the most different habitats on Earth and to establish intricate relationships with other living beings.

Knowing and protecting this connections is crucial to live an balanced and respectful life.