The English naturalist John Ray published significant works on natural history that included observations on fossils. He distinguished between fossils as organic remains and 'formed stones' that merely resembled living things, refining the classification of these objects. Ray's work contributed to the growing body of knowledge about the Earth's history and the complexities of God's creation.

Ray's 'physico-theology' sought to demonstrate God's wisdom through the study of nature, a tradition that deeply influenced writers like the Romantic poets. His work legitimized the detailed study of natural phenomena as a form of worship, a perspective that, while theological, encouraged the close observation of the natural world that was essential to both science and nature poetry.