Friedrich Christian Schmidt (Author)

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Friedrich Christian Schmidt (born May 5, 1755 in Gotha ; † December 26, 1830 ibid) was a German camerawoman and naturalist .

Life

Friedrich Christian Schmidt was the son of the Gotha forest secretary and later district chamber councilor Christian Friedrich Schmidt. At the age of 5, he developed an eye problem that severely affected his entire youth. He attended grammar school in Gotha and from autumn 1773 first heard philosophical and legal lectures at the University of Leipzig , but had to interrupt this course in August 1774 due to a deterioration in his eyesight. In April 1776 he continued his studies of law and camera science, mathematics, physics and natural history at the University of Jena with the support of a reader. Towards the end of the course, his eyesight improved and he was able to finish the course without further assistance.

In 1779 he represented the Amtsvoigt in Georgenthal for a year and on November 2, 1780, he took over the decay of the so-called headmaster's office, a busy rented civil servant position in Gotha. In 1813 he was given the title of Commissioner by the Duke . In 1825 he retired.

In 1779 Schmidt published his "Historical-Mineralogical Description of the Area around Jena." In it he corrects some of Johann Heinrich Schütte's mistakes , gives a more comprehensive list of fossils and depicts the Triassic shells Lima lineata and myophoria. He describes the individual mountains in Jena's area and lists the rocks and fossils found there. Of particular interest are his "hypotheses as to how this area could have got its present form before changes in our globe." He does not agree with the hypothesis at the time that these rocks owe their formation to the 40-day flood. He is certain that the Jena rocks were formed in the sea.

Friedrich Christian built up a conchylia collection over the years, beginning around 1792 , which quickly expanded through acquisitions (including the Johann Samuel Schröter collection ) and contributions from his numerous friends and became one of the largest collections in Germany.

In 1818 he published his thoughts and experiences on the establishment, treatment and storage of Conchylia collections. In his assessment of 1819 Lorenz Oken in the Isis magazine stated that this book "should be open in every conchylia cabinet on the first barrier".

Alexander von Humboldt , who inspected the collection in December 1826, convinced Duke Ernst I of the value of the collection and he acquired it in 1827 for 4000 thalers for the Friedenstein collection . Schmidt was allowed to use the collection for his entire life, but in return had to undertake to continue to increase it as best he could and to complete the handwritten directory, which was already well advanced. Until his death, Schmidt described a total of 17,200 exhibits from his collection in 15 folio volumes. At the time of his death, only 200 unprocessed exhibits remained.

Since 1821 Friedrich Christian Schmidt was an external member of the Society for the Entire Mineralogy of Jena and since 1824 a corresponding member of the Natural Research Society of the Osterland and the Senckenberg Natural Research Society .

Fonts

  • Historical-mineralogical description of the area around Jena: together with some hypotheses as to what caused this area to get its present shape before changes in our soil. Ettinger, Gotha 1779 (digitized version)
  • The bourgeois master builder, or attempt at a lesson for those interested in building, which enables them to design the furnishings of their residential buildings by means of a large number of very different plans and teaches them everything that they need to know before, during and after a building to have. Reyher, Gotha 1790 (digitized version)
  • Attempt on the best facility for setting up, treating and storing the various natural bodies and objects of art, especially the conchylia collections, along with a brief assessment of the conchyliological systems and writings and a tabular compilation and comparison of the six best and latest conchyliological systems, which are listed in a directory the most well-known conchylia is attached, as they can be classified according to the Lamarkic system. Perthes, Gotha 1818 (digitized version)

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Isis, 1819, pp. 1173–1174 ( digitized version )
personal data
SURNAME Schmidt, Friedrich Christian
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German camera operator, natural scientist and natural history collector
DATE OF BIRTH May 5, 1755
PLACE OF BIRTH Gotha
DATE OF DEATH December 26, 1830
Place of death Gotha