SADLY, Harold Cook has had to cancel due to a death in the family.  We hope he can join us another time.

Translating Chinese Medicine in the 17th Century: The Dutch Connection

In the 1670s and 1680s, three works appeared in Europe that were translations (with some commentary) from Chinese classical medical texts into French and Latin. Another work, on acupuncture, appeared in Latin and Dutch. The question of "translation" has recently been highlighted as an important subject for the attention of historians who wish to examine the movement of ideas and information across borders. In this case, the Jesuits are usually considered to be the "translators." But various Dutch figures, and of course Chinese ones, helped to make the mutable transcultural passages possible. What can we learn from expanding our field of view to take in not only the point-to-point movement ("China" to "Europe") but many of the other documented participants along the way?