Peter Artedi

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Peter Artedi, how he could have looked, painted by the artist Mary Pinzón.

Peter Artedi (also Petrus Arctaedius ; born February 22 or 27, 1705 in the parish of Anundsjö , municipality Örnsköldsvik in Ångermanland ; † September 27, 1735 in Amsterdam ) was a Swedish naturalist . He is considered the "father of ichthyology ".

Artedi did not publish any works during his lifetime. However, he had already partially completed very extensive work, which was published post mortem or, among others , was further processed by Carl von Linné , a fellow student and friend. Its official botanical author abbreviation is " Art. ".

Cover sheet to one of the main works by Peter Artedi

Life

Childhood and youth

Peter was the second child of Olaus Arctaedius (Olof Arctædius) and his wife Helena, nee Sidena. Olaus was head of the parish for four years before his son Peter was born. His mother also had a clerical background, as she was the daughter of Petrus Sidenius of Stockholm , a teacher of philosophy and a judge. This religious orientation of the parental home shaped Peter, who was expected to become a clergyman. In September 1716 the family moved to Nordmaling , a place near the Swedish coast, where he helped his almost 80-year-old father, who was almost blind, in running the parish. The proximity to the sea allowed Peters to fully awaken his previously latent interest in nature. So he quickly began to observe the abundant flora and fauna and spent a lot of time in nature.

In the same year he went to school in Härnösand , although he had contact with his peers, he was more concerned with studying fish and collecting plants. As soon as he had acquired a sufficient basic knowledge of the Latin language, he began to read the works of the previous alchemists . His generally good performance in school meant that he successfully graduated from high school in Härnösand and enrolled at Uppsala University in 1724 .

Time of study

Originally, Artedi came to the university to study philosophy and theology , but his interest in nature and the sciences led him to disregard his father's advice and choose to study chemistry . At the time, he was apparently the only chemistry student in the university. So it happened that he had to teach himself a lot, because there were only two professors, Lars Roberg , a respected anatomist and zoologist, and Olof Rudbeck the Younger , who taught natural history.

Four years after starting his university career, Carl von Linné came to Uppsala with the intention of studying science and looked for students with similar interests. He soon met Artedi, and they complemented each other well, because Artedi worked in the areas of alchemy, ichthyology and herpetology , leaving botany , birds and insects to Linnaeus. Both developed a close cooperation, so that they made mutual promises that if something should happen to either of them, the other would finish their work.

In 1734 Artedi wanted to travel abroad to expand his studies. To do this, he borrowed money and other equipment from his brothers-in-law and first traveled to London , where he stayed, however, only for a short time to consult the works of Francis Willughby and John Rays .

In July 1734 Artedi traveled to Holland, where he met Linnaeus in Leiden in 1735 . The latter had already been there for some time, and Albert Seba , a wealthy pharmacist of German origin, tried in vain to persuade Linnaeus to study fish. Linné introduced Seba to Artedi, who was happy to comply with Seba's request. He now lived near the river and examined the fish and insects from the property of Seba, who had put on a private collection.

Circumstances of his death

It is reported that Artedi lived more or less to himself and also liked to stay in taverns. On the day of his death, he is said to have been in Seba's house until about one o'clock at night and to have talked to several people about philosophical topics. On the way home he is said to have lost his balance in a dark place, fell into a canal and drowned. The accident was discovered the next day and his body was taken to the city hospital.

Dedication names

Carl von Linné named the genus Artedia of the umbelliferous plant family (Apiaceae) in his honor . The Cottidae (bullheads) also have the north-east Pacific genus Artedius . The genus Artedidraco (family Artedidraconidae ) with several species belongs to the circumantarctic suborder Notothenioidei .

Works

  • Historia piscium universalis (1735)
  • Synonymologia manuscript (1735)
  • Prolegomena institutionum (1735)
  • Bibliotheca Ichthyologica (1738)
  • Philosophia Ichthyologica (1738)

Notes on the Bibliotheca Ichthyologica

The 5-volume Bibliotheca Ichthyologica contains a critical appraisal of the work of other ichthyologists, a detailed morphological characterization of the fish and a diagnosis code for 45 genera as well as a description of 72 species . The division of the fish into four orders was later taken over by Linnaeus. Johann Julius Walbaum published an Artedius renovatus in 1792 .

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Artedi, Peter . In: Herman Hofberg, Frithiof Heurlin, Viktor Millqvist, Olof Rubenson (eds.): Svenskt biografiskt handlexikon . 2nd Edition. tape 1 : A-K . Albert Bonniers Verlag, Stockholm 1906, p. 50 (Swedish, runeberg.org ).
  2. ↑ According to the Swedish calendar , Peter Artedi was born on February 27, 1705, which corresponds to March 10 according to the Gregorian calendar .
  3. ^ Carl von Linné: Critica Botanica. Leiden 1737, p. 91.
  4. ↑ Carl von Linné: Genera Plantarum. Leiden 1742, p. 107.
personal data
SURNAME Artedi, Peter
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Arctaedius, Peter
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Swedish naturalist
DATE OF BIRTH February 22, 1705 or February 27, 1705
PLACE OF BIRTH Anundsjö , Örnsköldsvik municipality
DATE OF DEATH September 27, 1735
Place of death Amsterdam