Mantegazza pop. Dall'Heracleum Mantegazzianum di Sommier & Levier a The return of the Giant Hogweed dei Genesis e oltre

Abstract

Tuscan botanists and explorers Stéphen Sommier and Emile Levier during their trip to the Caucasus (1890) discovered a new plant species. In 1895 they named the species Heracleum mantegazzianum in dedication to their friend and anthropologist Paolo Mantegazza. This botanical species is a large, highly invasive, and poisonous herbaceous plant. The seeds brought by the naturalists quickly spread throughout Europe. It became common in Great Britain as an ornament of communal and botanical gardens. The
dense free trade between enthusiasts and sale in horticultural catalogs, all helped it spread throughout the natural environment of Europe. Due to its strong vitality it became an invasive species. Even the English musical group The Genesis dedicated in 1971 a song
to the plant, The return of the Giant Hogweed, using the vulgar name and quoting Mantegazza. The study presented here delves into the sources of inspiration of Genesis, which are broad and linked to both the popular and scientific spheres. We then consider the references to the economic, social, and cultural aspects that an invasive and toxic species entails, considering the eradication programs developed in most of the world’s countries. Finally even a political reading is provided in light of the «myths» that remains under the name of Mantegazza.