The Renaissance was a period of unrivaled beauty, enthusiasm, and interest in Florence, despite frequent epidemics and wars, mainly due to the presence of the Medici family, who nearly invented the modern banking and accounting sector. They were exceptional as enlightened and successful patrons of art, architecture, science, philosophy, and above all, every aspect of phytopharmacy. They collected medicinal and rare plants and created large botanical gardens, which still exist today.

The Medici sponsorship at the University of Pisa, the establishment of the chair of simple plants (medicinal plants) by Cosimo I, and the employment of Luca Ghini revolutionized the teaching of phytopharmacy. This book traces the development of the first hospital and academic garden of medicinal plants in Florence, under the guidance of the great Cosimo I de' Medici, and examines the plants that he and his sons used in their alchemical laboratories to create pharmaceutical preparations.

A selection of these plants is examined in detail, exploring how they can be used today, including their chemistry and therapeutic properties, as well as research conducted on them.