Philadelphia College of Pharmacy And Science Plaque

Name/Title

Philadelphia College of Pharmacy And Science Plaque

Entry/Object ID

PCP.2023.2.323

Description

Round earthenware Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science plaque depicting Hebe, goddess of eternal youth, and Demeter, goddess of harvest and agriculture. The center of the plaque reads: “Nosse haec omnia salus est," which translates to: "To know all these things is safety.”

Artwork Details

Medium

Stone

Subject

Hebe Demeter Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science

Context

The history of the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy’s seal is briefly recounted in Joseph W. England’s The First Century of the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy, 1821-1921 . According to the 1844 alumnus, Board of Trustees member, and APA editor Thomas S. Wiegand, included on early nineteenth century College of Apothecaries certificates was a sketch of a laboratory with a legend that read: “Quem scit uterque exerceat artem” [Let each one practice the art which he knows]. In 1822, the Committee in charge of the College’s seal changed the legend to the Cicero quote: “Quam quisque novit artem in hac se exerceat”[Let each one exercise himself in the art which he knows]. These maxims were eventually combined into a new legend: Nosse haec omnia salus est [To know all these things is safety] which was incorporated into the official seal of the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and, in this form, continues to appear on the College’s official documents and significant buildings.

Category

PCP memorabilia, decorative art/objects

Acquisition

Accession

PCP.2023.2

Made/Created

Time Period

Mid- to late-20th Century

Dimensions

Dimension Description

Plaque

Diameter

13-1/4 in

Exhibitions

Exhibition

Selections from the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy Permanent Collection

Notes

Exhibition Section: "PCP History"