Botanical expeditions
A botanical expedition is a scientific journey or voyage designed to explore the flora of a particular region. The expedition could be specifically designed for exploring the flora, or this could have been a part of studying the natural history of the region. A naturalist or botanist was charged with drawing and describing the flora, collecting specimens of unknown plants in a plant press, and identifying potential economically important plants.[1] On botanical expeditions funded by governments, the plants were often collected by the person in the field, but described and named by a government sponsored scientists at botanical gardens and universities. For example, many of the species collected on the Lewis and Clark Expedition were described and named by Frederick Traugott Pursh.[2]
The systematic collection of plants dates from the Renaissance although accounts of organised collection date back as far as the Pharaohs of 2000 BCE who illustrated plants and trees they found on their military campaigns abroad. Later, Alexander the Great (356–323 BCE) would bring back plants from his expeditions, increasing the level of botanical knowledge of his time, and establishing the Silk Roads between the Far East and Europe. Following the Fall of Constantinople in 1453, the emphasis shifted to maritime routes of exploration.[3][4]
References
- ^ Visible Empire: Botanical Expeditions and Visual Culture in the Hispanic Enlightenment, Daniela Bleichmar, University of Chicago Press, 2012
- ^ "Frederick Traugott Pursh (1774-1820)". Plantsystematics.org. Retrieved 2013-08-29.
- ^ Edwards 2021, p. 8.
- ^ Janick 2007.
Bibliography
- Edwards, Ambra (2021). The Plant-Hunter's Atlas: A World Tour of Botanical Adventures, Chance Discoveries and Strange Specimens. Quercus Publishing, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. ISBN 978-1-5294-1012-9.
- Janick, Jules (April 2007). "Plant Exploration: From Queen Hatshepsut to Sir Joseph Banks" (PDF). HortScience. 42 (2): 191–196.