Edmund Oskar von Lippmann

Edmund Oskar von Lippmann (around 1920)

Edmund Oskar von Lippmann (born January 9, 1857 in Vienna ; † September 24, 1940 in Halle (Saale) ) was a German chemist , sugar technologist and historian of science . From 1890 to 1926 he headed one of the largest sugar factories in Germany in Halle. With basic textbooks and handbooks on sugar chemistry , as well as on the cultural history of sugar beet and sugar , he gained a high international reputation.

Live and act

Origin and expansion of alchemy (1919)

Edmund Oskar von Lippmann, son of a sugar manufacturer, studied chemistry at the Polytechnikum (ETH) Zurich since 1874 and at the University of Heidelberg since 1877 . There he received his doctorate in 1878 under the aegis of the chemist Robert Bunsen with the dissertation " Sugar, its derivatives and its evidence ". In 1881 Lippmann became director of the sugar refinery in Duisburg and in 1884 director of the newly built sugar factory Rositz near Altenburg . In 1890 he took over the technical management of the sugar refinery in Halle (Saale) , which he expanded into one of the largest and most efficient sugar factories in Germany with relatively few resources. As an experienced industrial chemist, he succeeded in developing new refining processes for sugar production. In 1926, at the age of 70, he retired. In 1933, when questionnaires were issued to ascertain Jewish ancestors, he resigned from his teaching position. After he had filled out the questionnaire, his teaching license was revoked in 1935. Lippmann died in 1940 as a result of a traffic accident.

In addition to his work as the refinery director, Lippmann was also an extremely productive researcher in the fields of sugar chemistry , chemical technology and chemical history . He published around two hundred scientific papers, including several textbooks and manuals . One of his most important book publications is the work “ The types of sugar and their derivatives ” (1882), the third edition (1904) with a total of more than 2000 printed pages under the title “ The chemistry of the types of sugar ”. For several decades it was considered the authoritative standard work in the field of sugar chemistry.

Of the scientific-historical works of Lippmann, the following should be emphasized: “ History of sugar, its presentation and use, from the oldest times to the beginning of beet sugar production ” (first edition 1890) and “ History of the beet (beta) as a cultivated plant from the earliest times to its appearance von Achard 's main work (1809) "(first edition Berlin 1925). Noteworthy of the more extensive chemical history publications are his " Treatises and lectures on the history of the natural sciences " (two volumes, 1906, 1913) and the three-volume work " Origin and Spread of Alchemy " (1919, 1931, 1954). Lippmann carefully documented his work on the history of science and embedded it in general cultural history . They found high recognition in the professional world.

Lippmann received high honors for his scientific achievements. In 1901, Prussia was the first person in a non-state position to grant him the title of professor . From 1926 to 1933 Lippmann held lectures as honorary professor for the history of natural sciences at the University of Halle (Saale) . The Prussian Academy of Sciences in Berlin awarded him the Silver Leibniz Medal in 1919 and the German Society for the History of Medicine, Science and Technology in 1926 the Sudhoff Medal . Lippmann was also a member of the German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina zu Halle (Saale) (since 1898), corresponding member of the Saxon Academy of Sciences (since 1930), honorary doctorates from the Dresden University of Technology , the University of Halle (Saale) and the University of Rostock , as well Honorary member of all German and several foreign sugar industry associations.

Major works

• The types of sugar and their derivatives . Vieweg Braunschweig publisher 1882; 2nd edition, ibid. 1895; 3rd edition, ibid. 1904. The 2nd and 3rd editions were each published in two volumes under the title Die Chemie der Zuckerarten .
• History of sugar, its presentation and use, from the earliest times to the beginning of beet sugar production. A contribution to cultural history . Verlag Hesse Leipzig 1890 ( digitized edition of the University and State Library Düsseldorf ); 2nd edition. Verlag Julius Springer Berlin 1929; Reprint of the 1929 edition with additions and supplements, Verlag M. Sänd Niederwalluf near Wiesbaden 1970.
  • Supplements and additions to the history of sugar. (2 parts) in: Journal of the Association for the German Sugar Industry 1934, p. 806 ff., And 1938, p. 359 ff.
• The development of the German sugar industry from 1850 to 1900. Commemorative publication on the 50th anniversary of the Association of the German Sugar Industry . Publisher Hesse & Becker Leipzig 1900.
• Treatises and lectures on the history of the natural sciences . 2 volumes, Verlag Veit Leipzig, Vol. 1 1906 ( digitized version ); Vol. 2 1913 ( digitized version ).
• Origin and expansion of alchemy. With an appendix: On the older history of metals. A contribution to cultural history . Publishing house Julius Springer Berlin 1919.
  • Reprint of this edition: Georg Olms Verlag Hildesheim 1978; Vol. 2 with the addition: A reading and reference book , Julius Springer Berlin 1931 ( digitized version ); Vol. 3, edited by Richard von Lippmann, Verlag Chemie Weinheim 1954.
• Time tables on the history of organic chemistry. An attempt . Publishing house Julius Springer Berlin 1921.
• Contributions to the history of natural sciences and technology , Vol. 1: Verlag Julius Springer Berlin 1923; Vol. 2: published by Richard von Lippmann, Verlag Chemie Weinheim 1953.
• History of the beet (beta) as a cultivated plant from the earliest times to the appearance of Achard's main work (1809). Festschrift for the 75th anniversary of the Association of the German Sugar Industry . Verlag Julius Springer Berlin 1929. - Reprint of this edition with supplements and additions: Verlag M. Sänd Niederwalluf near Wiesbaden 1971.
• The history of bismuth between 1400 and 1800. A contribution to the history of technology and culture . Julius Springer Berlin 1930.
• History of the magnetic needle up to the invention of the compass (around 1300) , Julius Springer Berlin publishing house in 1932. An attempt to refute all the theses that ascribe the invention of the compass to the Chinese and therefore settle in Northern Europe.
• Spontaneous generation and life force. On the history of these problems from the earliest times to the beginning of the 20th century . Publishing house Julius Springer Berlin 1933.
• Memories from my life, 1857–1937 . Handwritten estate from EO von Lippmann. Selected sections edited by Guntwin Bruhns. In: Zuckerindustrie Vol. 107–119, 1982–1994.

literature

• Ernst von Lippmann: Directory of the books published by Edmund O. von Lippmann and the work on the history of natural sciences and technology . In: Studies on the History of Chemistry. Festgabe Edmund O. v. Lippmann on his seventieth birthday. Edited by Julius Ruska. Verlag Julius Springer Berlin 1927, pp. 228–233 (with picture before p. 1).
• Eduard Färber : Edmund O. von Lippmann on his seventy-fifth birthday . In: Die Naturwissenschaften Vol. 20, 1932, pp. 25–28.
• Rudolph Zaunick : Edmund O. von Lippmann on his eightieth birthday . In: Die Naturwissenschaften Vol. 25, 1937, pp. 33–34 (with picture).
• G (untwin) B (ruhns): Edmund Oskar von Lippmann on his 125th birthday . In: Zuckerindustrie Vol. 107 (32), 1982, pp. 60-61 (with picture).
• Klaus Priesner:  Lippmann, Edmund Ritter von. In: New German Biography (NDB). Volume 14, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1985, ISBN 3-428-00195-8 , p. 666 ( digitized version ).
• Henrik Eberle: The Martin Luther University in the time of National Socialism. Mdv, Halle 2002, ISBN 3-89812-150-X , p. 425

Web links

Commons : Edmund Oskar von Lippmann  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Literature by and about Edmund Oskar von Lippmann in the catalog of the German National Library
• Entry on Edmund Oskar von Lippmann in the Catalogus Professorum Halensis

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Karsten Jedlitschka: The archive of the German Academy of Natural Scientists Leopoldina. Acta Historica Leopoldina Supplement 4. Wissenschaftliche Verlagsgesellschaft Stuttgart 2007. Page 71. ISBN 978-3-8047-2366-5