Abstract
Abraham Steck's dissertation entitled De Sagu was completed at the Faculty of Medicine in Bern, Switzerland in 1757. Not only is this the first known scientific book on the subject of sago, but apparently also the first scholarly book ever published on any aspect of the Palm family. Written in Latin, this 44-page dissertation is a rare book found in only a very few libraries in Europe and the United States. Steck presents a discussion of palm systematics in relation to the genus Sagus (= Metroxylon), as the palm was then known. De Sagu also provides interesting historical information about sago starch as a product in Europe in the early 18th Century. This article provides a free translation of the main points of De Sagu, with emphasis on starch extraction and utilization.
https://ror.org/03k94d886 
