Flora Danicais a comprehensive atlas ofbotanyfromthe Age of Enlightenment,containingfolio-sized pictures of all the wild plants native toDenmark,in the period from 1761 to 1883.
History
editFlora Danicawas proposed byG. C. Oeder,then professor of botany at theBotanic Garden in Copenhagen,in 1753 and was completed 123 years later, in 1883. The complete work comprises 51 parts and 3 supplements, containing 3,240 copper engraved plates. The original plan was to cover all plants, includingbryophytes,lichensandfunginative to crown lands of theDanishking, that isDenmark,Schleswig-Holstein,Oldenburg-DelmenhorstandNorwaywith itsNorth AtlanticdependenciesIceland,theFaroe IslandsandGreenland.However, changes were made due to territorial cessations during the period of publication. After 1814, when the double monarchy ofDenmark–Norwaywas abolished, very few Norwegian plants were included, and similar changes were seen after 1864, when the duchies ofSchleswigandHolsteinwere ceded. However, in the mid-19th-century era ofScandinavism,theNordiske NaturforskermødeinCopenhagenproposed to make Flora Danica aScandinavianwork. Thus, three supplementary volumes were issued, containing the remaining Norwegian plants and the more important plants only occurring inSweden.
Oeder travelled extensively in the regions covered by the proposed Flora. The illustrations were produced by Michael Rössler (1705–1777), a skilled engraver fromNuremberg,and his son, Martin Rössler (1727–1782), who drew the plants on field trips with Oeder.[1]
The first ten issues appeared with a total of 600 plates. To produce the illustrations, both Rösslers moved to Copenhagen in 1755 and remained there until the end of their lives, with Michael becoming a copper engraver. Their illustrations are considered the best in Flora Danica, and set a benchmark in botanical illustration. Later illustrators were Johann Christian Thornam (1822–1908), Christian F. Mueller (1748–1814), the brother of the botanist editorOtto Friedrich Müller,for volumes 12 to 21, and Johann Theodor Bayer (1782–1873), for volumes 22–46, accounting for some 1500 plates.[2]
Publishers/editors through time
edit| Years | Fascicles | Plates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Georg Christian Oeder | 1761–1771 | 1–10 | 1–600 |
| O.F. Müller | 1775–1782 | 11–15 | 601–900 |
| Martin Vahl | 1787–1799 | 16–21 | 901–1260 |
| J.W. Hornemann | 1806–1840 | 22–39 | 1261–2340 |
| S. Drejer,J. F. SchouwandJens Vahl | 1843 | 40 | 2341–2400 |
| F. Liebmann | 1845–1853 | 41–43 & Suppl. 1 | 2401–2580 & S1-60 |
| Japetus SteenstrupandJohan Lange | 1858 | 44 | 2581–2640 |
| Johan Lange | 1861–1883 | 45–51 & Suppl. 2–3 | 2641–3060 & S61-180 |
Dinner set
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In 1790 the DanishCrown Prince Frederikordered a dinner set made decorated with exact copies of the plates ofFlora Danica.The dinner set was meant as a gift for RussianEmpress Catherine II.Catherine, however, never received it, as she died in 1796. It is currently on display atChristiansborg Palace,Amalienborg PalaceandRosenborg Castle.
The dinner set is still in use for special occasions in theDanish royal family(latest occasions 1980 & 2022). Copies of the set are sold by theRoyal CopenhagenPorcelain Manufactory.
References
edit- ^Friis, I. (2019)."G.C. Oeder's conflict with Linnaeus and the implementation of taxonomic and nomenclatural ideas in the monumental Flora Danica project (1761–1883)".Gardens' Bulletin Singapore.71:53–85.doi:10.26492/gbs71(suppl.2).2019-07.S2CID211661015– viaResearchGate.
- ^"Fungi in floras, 1600–1800: Illustrated mushroom books, part 1"(PDF).Bulletin of the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation.25(1).Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation.2013.ISSN0192-3641.
External links
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- Flora Danica.The Royal Copenhagen Porcelain Manufactory's page on the Flora Danica dinner set.
- Flora Danica Online.The completeFlora Danicascanned by the Danish National Library of Science and Medicine.