Item data
Item Type:
Document
From:
Swartz, Olof Peter
Sent from:
Stockholm, Sweden
To:
Smith, Sir James Edward
Summary:
The war [between Britain and France] has disrupted their correspondence for two and a half years, sends recent "transactions" of [Swedish] Academy [of Sciences]. Effect of the war on Swedish science: isolated from foreign literature, except for occassional communications from Britain, has seen parts of Smith's "Exotic Botany" and "Flora Graeca" and [Dawson] Turner's "Hist. Fucorum". Only remarkable things produced in Sweden have been the "Swedish Botany and Zoology" [Palmstruch's "Svensk botanik" (1802-1819)?], supervised by himself, and [Johan Peter] Westring's "history of the lichens". Isolated from European colleagues, which has disrupted the planned collaboration between himself and [Daniel Matthias Heinrich] Mohr [(1780-1808)] on a "Synopsis or Historia Muscorum", and [Heinrich Adolph] Scharder's Gottingen printing of [Erik] Acharius' "Lichenographia universalis".
Concern over fate of an "instructif [sic] present" sent to the Linnean Society by Acharius. [Carl Peter] Thunberg and [Adam] Afzelius are living in Uppsala, the latter has written on the Swedish 'Rosa' and put his "African treasures" aside. Report of a "secular celebration of the birthday of a giant man [Linnaeus]", including a eulogy by Dr [Sven Anders] Hedin, one of his former pupils, held in Linnaeus' first school in Wexiö [Växjö], and a grand fete at the Academy of Uppsala. It is the only instance in Sweden of a public honour being given to an individual subject. The museum and auditory were also consecrated, attended by "many thousands" including most of the old "Linnaean disciples" who gave the whole "a most venerable appearance". Eager to see new genus of moss ['Hookeria'] described by Smith.
Letter date:
16 Dec 1808
Languages:
English
Prev Ref No:
9.188
Additional Information:
| Note type | Note |
|---|
| Additional | Smith replied 2 May 1809 |
| Publn Note | Smith, P (ed.), (1832). "Memoir and correspondence of... Sir James Edward Smith" London: Longman, vol 1, pp.479-481; erroneously dated 16 Oct 1808. |
| Related Material | Concern over Acharius' gift to Linnean Society, see JES/COR/9/99-100.
Smith, J E, (1804-1805). "Exotic botany" London: J. Sowerby.
Sibthorp, J, (1806-1837). "Flora Graeca", London: Taylor.
Turner, D, (1808-1819). "Fuci sive plantarum fucorum generi a botanicis ascriptarum icones descriptiones et historia. - Fuci; or, colored figures and descriptions of the plants referred by botanists to the genus Fucus." London: Arch.
Palmstruch, J W, (1802-1819). "Svensk botanik, utgifven af J.W. Palmstruch och [Bd.I] C W Venus [Bd.VII & VIII] (Gustav Johan Billberg med text [Bd.III & IV] forfattad af Conrad Quensel; Bd.V-VIII Olof Swartz.)." Stockholm: [printer:] Delen.
Westring, J P, (1805). "Svenska lafvarnas farghistoria, eller sattet att anvanda dem till farning och annan hushallsnytta." Stockholm: Delen.
Acharius, E, (1810). "Lichenographia universalis ..." Gottinga: Danckwerts.
Hedin, S, (1808). "Minne af von Linne fader och son." Stockholm: [printer:] Nordstrom.
Smith, J E, 'Characters of Hookeria, a new Genus of Mosses, with Descriptions of Ten Species', "Transactions of the Linnean Society of London", 1808, 9(1), pp.272-282. |
| Finding Aids | Dawson, W R, (1934). "Catalogue of the manuscripts in the Library of The Linnean Society - Part I. The Smith papers: The correspondence and miscellaneous papers of Sir James Edward Smith", London: Linnean Society. |
