Abstract

VEGA Y ORTEGA BAEZ, Rodrigo Antonio. "A science as useful as it is pleasant" The lectures of Pío Bustamante y Rocha: illustration and romanticism in botanical instruction, 1845-1860. Revista Col. San Luis [online]. 2019, vol.9, n.18, pp.235-257. ISSN 2007-8846.  https://doi.org/10.21696/rcsl9182019876.

The aim of the paper is to cover the development of the Chair of Botany expressed in the eclecticism of illustrated and romantic discourse. It is based on social studies of the science that make it possible to relate education history with the development of Mexican science. The Chair operated during the sociopolitical crisis that pervaded the country and was an active Mexican scientific space in the 19th century. In this regard, research called for contrasting newspaper sources with the bibliographic archives in order to precisely cover the scientific dynamic. The originality of the paper lies in the fact that up to now there were no press-based historical studies regarding the development of the country's Botanical Garden between 1845 and 1860 and highlights of its findings include the fact that interest in the development of botany in Mexico was due to its utility in generating economic resources for society and the nation state.

Keywords : botany; education; press; science; Mexico.