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Summary
This chapter aims to contribute to the analysis of a particular phenomenon in the history of science, that is the emergence of a new view of nature, as manifested by the formation of a specific academic community and the publication of numerous treatises, between 1530 and 1565. It does not so much intend to praise the energy and foresight of those whom a history of event-driven sciences calls precursors, as to assess the evolution and conditions of this movement. Focusing on ichthyology, it presents a brief analysis of five stages, beginning with the first re-publications of ancient sources, in particular Aristotle and Pliny. It continues with comparisons between the species described and the observations of 16th-century naturalists. Finally, it turns to the treatises themselves, whose prefaces already document the awareness of a new approach and methodology. It thus aims to further a better grasp of the often misunderstood movement of Renaissance natural history with its characteristic and permanent attempts to reconcile ancient texts with a sensory appropriation of nature, and whose influence extended until the middle of the 18th century.