Giuseppe Acerbi

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Giuseppe Acerbi
Palazzo Gonzaga-Acerbi: Giuseppe Acerbi's residence in Castel Goffredo

Giuseppe Acerbi (born May 3, 1773 in Castel Goffredo near Mantua , † August 25, 1846 ibid) was an Italian traveler and naturalist . He studied natural sciences in Mantua and obtained his doctorate in law in Pavia .

Live and act

Acerbi was the first Italian to reach the North Cape by land; a remarkable achievement on a route that was previously considered impassable in the summer. Accompanied by the Swedish painter Skiöldebrand, he traveled from Helsingborg through southern Sweden to Stockholm from 1798 to 1799, then via Upsala, Abo and through Finland to the North Cape . “As an Italian, he was particularly interested in the peculiarities of the Scandinavian countries, which are shaped by the northern climate, and the way of life of the population, especially the Lapps (Saamen). His travelogue contains a wealth of information on the geography of Sweden, Finland and Lapland, a description of Stockholm, chapters on Swedish culture and economy, and an ethnographic description of the Lapps and Finns. The German translation is slightly shortened and has an appendix. The original edition appeared in English in 1802, an Italian edition came out later… ”(Catalog of the Eutin State Library, Vol. I, No. 0006). Leopold von Buch wrote in the foreword to his work Reise durch Norway und Lappland : “Before Skiöldebrands and Acerbis Reisen nach den Nordkap appeared, we had only very imperfect concepts, such as a connection between Swedish and Norwegian Lapland possible in the north of Torneo sey. "

From 1825 to 1834 he was the Austrian consul in Egypt . From 1828 to 1829 he accompanied the archaeological expedition Ippolito Rossellinis and Jean-François Champollion to Upper Egypt. On this trip he acquired archaeological finds that can be viewed today in the Palazzo del Te , Mantua. Several articles on this journey have appeared in the Bibliotheca italiana.

Fonts (selection)

  • Travels through Sweden, Finland and Lappland, to the North Cape, in the years 1798 and 1799. London, 1802 (2 vols.)

German edition: Acerbi, Joseph: Journey through Sweden and Finland, to the extreme borders of Lapland, in the years 1798 and 1799. Translated from English by Ch. Weyland. Along with corrective remarks from a knowledgeable scholar. Berlin, Vossische Buchhandlung, 1803. Magazine of strange new travel descriptions, 26th volume (published unchanged in the same year and by the same publisher as the second volume in the series New magazine of strange travel descriptions ).

  • Studj e lavori fatti in Egitto intorno la spiegazione de 'geroglifi da' viaggiatori e principalmente dalla Commissione franco-toscana sotto la direzione del celebre M. Champollion minore. In: Biblioteca Italiana di scienze ed arti. Tomo LVI. Milano 1829.
  • Descrizione della Nubia e dell'Egitto monumentale secondo le scoperte del sig. Vhampollion. In: Bibliotheca italiana. (as before), Tomo LIX, Milano 1830.
  • Materiali per servire ai progressi della geografia dell'Africa centrale. 1840

literature

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Acerbi, Giuseppe
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Italian traveler, Austrian diplomat
DATE OF BIRTH May 3, 1773
PLACE OF BIRTH at Mantua
DATE OF DEATH August 25, 1846
Place of death at Mantua