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The Invisible Harvest
The Invisible Harvest
by Bethany van Rijswijk
A Microhistory of Heretical Herbs
The scholar of history is a gatherer. Whatever their historical method, there is a process of selection; the moment when a bright fruit or flower catches their eye and they reach out to place it in their gathering basket of stories. However bountiful the scholar’s harvest or refined their technique, there are always some fruits left glimmering among the inner branches of the trees or rotting sweetly in the grasses. These are our invisible harvest, the hidden histories of outcasts and outliers so often overlooked in grand historical narratives.
In this intoxicating collection of five essays on poisonous and psychoactive plants and fungi, Bethany van Rijswijk gleans some of these glimmering fruits. Through deep critical engagement with obscure tales of visionary sacraments, owl-chemists, fairy forts, otherworld commons, mystic root-cutters, forking paths, vermicular angels, dancing plagues, mushroom cults, and shamanic remnants, she reveals a magic that persists and opens passageways to contrary states of being and thinking, if only we are bold enough to embrace them.
Following in the footsteps of Carlo Ginzburg, Dale Pendell, and Sylvia Federici, The Invisible Harvest leads readers down a poison path of timeless liberation. Complete with hallucinogenic illustrations, extensive end-notes, and a bibliography for further reading, it is a feast for the mind and eyes alike.
Published by Broccoli (2023). A new copy in perfect condition.
80-page paperback book measuring 5.8 x 8.25 inches (148 x 210 mm), with gold foil on the cover and a sturdy sewn binding. Illustrated throughout with van Rijswijk’s surreal full-color botanical collages.
by Bethany van Rijswijk
A Microhistory of Heretical Herbs
The scholar of history is a gatherer. Whatever their historical method, there is a process of selection; the moment when a bright fruit or flower catches their eye and they reach out to place it in their gathering basket of stories. However bountiful the scholar’s harvest or refined their technique, there are always some fruits left glimmering among the inner branches of the trees or rotting sweetly in the grasses. These are our invisible harvest, the hidden histories of outcasts and outliers so often overlooked in grand historical narratives.
In this intoxicating collection of five essays on poisonous and psychoactive plants and fungi, Bethany van Rijswijk gleans some of these glimmering fruits. Through deep critical engagement with obscure tales of visionary sacraments, owl-chemists, fairy forts, otherworld commons, mystic root-cutters, forking paths, vermicular angels, dancing plagues, mushroom cults, and shamanic remnants, she reveals a magic that persists and opens passageways to contrary states of being and thinking, if only we are bold enough to embrace them.
Following in the footsteps of Carlo Ginzburg, Dale Pendell, and Sylvia Federici, The Invisible Harvest leads readers down a poison path of timeless liberation. Complete with hallucinogenic illustrations, extensive end-notes, and a bibliography for further reading, it is a feast for the mind and eyes alike.
Published by Broccoli (2023). A new copy in perfect condition.
80-page paperback book measuring 5.8 x 8.25 inches (148 x 210 mm), with gold foil on the cover and a sturdy sewn binding. Illustrated throughout with van Rijswijk’s surreal full-color botanical collages.