Huernia barbata (Masson) Haw. Possibly 1777 - 1786

This is Robert Jacob Gordon’s botanical study of the Huernia barbata. Gordon was a Dutch explorer, military officer, and naturalist of Scottish descent, active in the Cape Colony during the late 18th century. As a study of a plant, the Huernia barbata embodies the scientific drive of the Enlightenment. But consider this image in the context of colonialism. Gordon, in his role as a military officer, was also complicit in the displacement and oppression of the indigenous populations of the Cape. How do we reconcile the seemingly objective pursuit of natural science with the social realities of colonial expansion? Botanical studies were not merely neutral records of nature. They were tools of empire, used to catalogue and exploit the resources of colonized lands. What does it mean to look at this image knowing it was produced as part of a broader project of colonial domination? The plant itself, indifferent to human affairs, becomes a silent witness to history.