A series of five meetings open to all interested parties, organized by the University of Parma thanks to the University Fund for Public Engagement (FAPE), together with the Pilotta Monumental Complex and the Monastery of San Giovanni, to highlight the Ancient Apothecary of San Giovanni Evangelista in Parma, located in the Benedictine complex of San Giovanni and recently returned to the city, as a testament to the journey from medieval apothecary to modern pharmacy.
The audience will be guided by professors from the University of Parma, representatives of the Pilotta Monumental Complex, and the Benedictines of the Monastery of San Giovanni in a narrative of the evolution of the art of pharmacy. The meetings, aimed at both boys and girls and adults, will combine scientific dissemination and cultural appreciation with interactive moments for questions and insights.
The documentary material from the Palatina Library and the objects preserved in the Apothecary (mortars, albarelli, jars, retorts) will provide inspiration for illustrating various aspects of the apothecary’s activity.
The project’s promoters are Unipr professors Silvia Pescina, Francesco Potì, Patrizia Santi, and Ilaria Zanotti; the curators of the Antica Spezieria di San Giovanni Evangelista, Carla Campanini (Monumental Complex of the Pilotta) and Maria Cristina Quagliotti (Monumental Complex of the Pilotta); Diego Cauzzi (Monumental Complex of the Pilotta); and the Prior of the Monastery of San Giovanni Evangelista, Father Francesco La Rocca.
All appointments will be followed by a free visit to the adjacent Antica Spezieria.
Meeting Schedule
March 6
Antidotes, Recipes, and Knowledge from the Ancient Apothecary
March 27
Healing Herbs of Yesterday and Today: From Surprising Confirmations to Unexpected Denials
April 17
Omnia venenum sunt: From Humors to Epidemics, the Art of Healing in the Ancient Apothecary
May 8
Among Mortars and Jars in the Apothecary’s Laboratory
May 29
Theriac, the Panacea for All Ills