Anselmus Boëtius de Boodt (1550-1632)

Natural paintings from the talented Flemish draughtsman Anselmus Boëtius de Boodt (1550–1632). Along with the German known as Georgius Agricola, de Boodt was responsible for establishing modern mineralogy. He was an avid mineral collector who travelled widely to various mining regions in Germany, Bohemia and Silesia to collect samples. De Boodt was also a gifted draughtsman who made many natural history illustrations and developed a natural history taxonomy. After studying artes at the University of Louvain, he left to study canonical and civil law at the University of Orléans from the end of 1572. In 1579 he was appointed to the city council of Bruges and was involved in the financial administration of the city. In 1587 the Flemish doctor and pioneering botanist Carolus Clusius left the imperial botanical garden of Emperor Rudolph II in Prague and de Boodt took over his position. De Boodt was also appointed the medical court doctor of the Emperor. He also made many watercolours of native and exotic animals and plants and filled twelve volumes with 728 illustrations of quadrupeds, reptiles, birds, fish, insects and plants. He thus aimed to depict all creatures of the natural world as his compatriot Joris Hoefnagel who was also working at Rudolph II's court had done earlier in his series of the Four Elements. De Boodt's volumes can be regarded as a paper museum. The publication of the Gemmarum et Lapidum Historia ensured de Boodt's European reputation and he could afford to live in luxury.