Manual Work and Mental Work: Humanist Knowledge for Professions in the Siglo de Oro

In the early modern period, numerous texts deal with professions by presenting the knowledge required in each case, individual fields of activity, purpose, origin and prestige. The course of argumentation is humanistic, insofar as it mostly starts from the human being. The ancient idea of the primacy of mental work over manual work is influential. Spanish overall representations of knowledge, professions and outstanding professional representatives are shown. Mechanical arts and artes liberales are presented on the basis of individual professions. The higher faculties of medicine, theology and jurisprudence with their representatives follow.