Li Shizhen
Compendium of Materia Medica

Li's bibliography included nearly 900 books. Because of its size, it was not easy to use, which had classified herbs only according to strength. He broke them down to animal, mineral, and plant and divided those categories by their source. Dr. S. Y. Tan says: "his plants were classified according to the habitat, such as aquatic or rock origins, or by special characteristics, e.g. all sweet-smelling plants were grouped together."

With every entry, he included:

Compendium of Materia Medica contained nearly 1,900 substances, which included 374 that had not appeared in other works. Not only did it list and describe the substances, but it also included prescriptions for use – about 11,000 - 8,000 of which were not well known. The Compendium of Materia Medica also had 1160 illustrated drawings to aid the text.

In addition to writing Compendium of Materia Medica, Li wrote about gallstones, using ice to bring down a fever, and using steam and fumigants to prevent the spread of infection. Li also emphasized preventative medicine. He said that "To cure disease is like waiting until one is thirsty before digging a well..." and listed over 500 treatments to maintain good health and strengthen the body, 50 of which he invented himself.

While only six copies of the original edition remain – one in the US Library of Congress, two in China, and three in Japan (a seventh copy in Berlin was destroyed during World War II) – several new editions and numerous translations have been made throughout the centuries. In 1959, it was replaced.
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