Natural Things in Early Modern Worlds

For many, we have become so attuned and accustomed to our natural surroundings that we often neglect to consider how and why natural objects are, well, where they are. This groundbreaking collection of essays and original artwork traces the lost and found histories of natural things and how human relationships to these objects have been profoundly altered throughout the course of several centuries. Natural Things (Routledge) analyzes the impact of spreading colonialism and the global trade routes of the 1500s to early 1900s to understand these shifting relationships. From coffee to pitcher plants, it explores how these things gained new meaning while departing from the old.