John Lhotsky

Cape Solander, Botany Bay , New South Wales , published by Lhotsky (1839)

John Lhotsky , also Lhotzsky and Lhotzky , (born June 27, 1795 in Lemberg , Galicia , † November 23, 1866 in London ; the exact dates of life are, however, controversial) was a Galician, k. k. Austrian naturalist , lithographer , author and adventurer. He was born in what was then the Austrian Crown Land, Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, which previously belonged to Poland-Lithuania and is now in Ukraine .

Surname

Lhotsky goes by different names like Jan , Joannes or Johann Lhotsky, as well as Dr. John Lhotsky listed in literature. Lhotsky never presented himself as an Austrian, but as a Pole.

Youth and education

Little is known about his youth. His parents were Czech. His father's name was Joseph, an Austrian government official. In 1812 he began studying medicine in Prague , followed by further study visits to Vienna , Lemberg, Berlin , Paris and Leipzig . He graduated from the University of Jena in 1819 with a doctorate in medicine .

Europe

After his studies he cataloged the flora in Bohemia with his brother Presl in Prague . They published this work under the title Flora Conchica . In 1820 he wrote two writings on the Enlightenment . In these writings he also turned against the authorities and was therefore sentenced to a stay in prison in Vienna from 1822 to 1828.

Australia

New South Wales

After his release, he embarked for Australia with the intention of collecting plants and selling them to museums. On his journey he stayed in Brazil for 18 months and arrived in Sydney on May 18, 1832 . In Australia he was given neither land nor a position as curator at a museum. For his maintenance he received a small pension that he received from the Bavarian King Ludwig I , who supported his studies in South America and Australia. To earn money, he traveled and worked as a journalist. His first article on Aboriginal life was published in the Sydney Gazette on October 6, 1832.

He gave lectures and collected plants. In February 1833 he sold a large part of his collection. He was the first to report in a newspaper about the Snowy Mountains and the area beyond in early 1834 . In order to make a living, he hired himself as a coachman and horse rental company from May 1834. In 1834 he also published a work on songs and songs of the Monaro Aborigines who lived near the Snowy Montains. It was the very first work on this subject. He also brought out a lithographed series about the colony of New South Wales , especially landscapes. In 1835 he promoted his private museum, which exhibited insects, minerals, drawings, birds and skeletons. He also offered framed and glazed watercolors as landscape paintings for purchase. Most of the works he offered were not by himself.

Tasmania

Since he did not get a chance of employment in a museum in New South Wales , he went to Tasmania , where he applied as a biologist for the colonial administration there. He arrived in Tasmania on October 14, 1836 on the barque Frances Freeling . He did not get a job, only Lieutenant governor Sir John Franklin got him a post as a convict overseer on the Tasman Peninsula . He gave up this after three months. Although he lectured, wrote newspaper articles, sold his plant collection and pictures, he became impoverished. Because of his radical views, some of which resulted in arrogance, he had few friends and supporters.

In April 1838 he embarked on the Emu for the United Kingdom . There he tried to earn money as an author and with lectures. These efforts met with little success. He became impoverished, fell ill and died in 1866 in Dalston German Hospital in London.

Meaning and personality

personality

Lhotsky was a determined and committed democrat who campaigned against the authorities. Probably this was an obstacle to his professional success at the time. He is described as a warm and honest person, although his handling of money and debts is viewed critically. He stood up for oppressed people, which was also reflected in the fact that he gave up his work as a convict overseer after a short time, although he urgently needed money.

meaning

In New South Wales, Lhotsky was the first to describe the Australian landscape and artists and their works. In addition to his publications, he drew landscapes and created botanical and zoological illustrations. A vocabulary of the Tasmanian language remained unpublished . In Tasmania he created a large plant collection with 200 specimens.

His zoological and vegetable collections in early Australia were trend-setting, extensive and of great importance. However, they were not properly recognized. His application to become a botanist in the colonial administration of New South Wales was unsuccessful and the post remained vacant. His qualifications and the work he did were not recognized in his time. Lhotsky was the first person to find traces of gold and who was able to prove that there will be gold finds on the Australian continent due to the prevailing geological conditions.

Honors

According to him, the fish are Lhostkya from the family of garfish and Myrtle Lhotskia been named, later in Calytrix have been renamed. He is not granted the official botanical author's abbreviation.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c d} John Lhotsky b. June 27, 1795 , at daao.org.au. Retrieved October 12, 2018.
2. ↑ ^{a b} John Lhotsky b. June 27, 1795 , at daao.org.au. Retrieved October 12, 2018.
3. ↑ John Lhotsky and the Expedition . In: 200 years of history of the German-speaking community in Australia. Part IS 84. Special Edition: The Week in Australia of January 1988. Europa Kurier Pty. Ltd. Bankstown. ISSN 0726-4860.
4. ↑ ^{a b c d} John Lhotsky (1795–1866) , on adb.anu.edu.au. Retrieved October 12, 2018.
5. ^ ^{A b} First man of Snowy River . Sydney Morning Herald , March 13, 1954. Retrieved October 14, 2018.