Revisiting the Historical Trajectory of the “Dr. João Barbosa Rodrigues” Botanical Museum at the São Paulo Botanical Garden

Abstract

This study delves into the historical journey of the “Dr. João Barbosa Rodrigues” Botanical Museum, a space of memory located within the São Paulo Botanical Garden. It discusses its historical origins and material, institutional, and contextual transformations up to the present day. This space has seen advancements, setbacks, challenges, and potentialities as a small museum of natural history. It has undergone three reconfigurations of its physical and internal structures, gradually modernizing its museum concept while retaining its identity as a museum with a unified focus on botany. It reopened in early 2020 and is currently operating within a subtle boundary established between the public and private sectors due to the concession of the São Paulo Botanical Garden’ operation to private initiatives, although it remains under public control. In this renewed museum, one can observe its contribution as a space of social responsibility, imbued with meanings and functions that evoke imagery by its memory spaces related to the concerns of its founder, the botanist Frederico Carlos Hoehne. Over its 80 years of existence, this museum has evolved from a neutral space to one engaged in the conservation of nature and contemporary environmental issues. Its exhibition now contextualizes these themes, becoming a narrative museum that responds to everchanging local challenges. Its pedagogical role is vital in an inclusive and equitable society, promoting education and learning. The museum constitutes a contemporary space, transcending its traditional functions of preservation, conservation, and research, serving society by educational initiatives on botany, nature conservation, and environmental sustainability.