The Linneaus Apostles

The Linnaeus Apostles have intrigued me since reading about them in Linnaeus: the Compleat Naturalist, by Wilfred Blunt. Carl Linnaeus (1707 – 1778) was a Swedish botanist and Professor of Medicine at Uppsala University, and is considered the father of the modern taxonomy. He advocated his classification and binomial naming system for plants, animals, and minerals, and used a sexual system for classifying plants.



Botanical exploration range for four of the apostles, from http://www.ikfoundation.org/ilinnaeus/imaps.php. On the website, you can select one or more apostle to learn more (each one is assigned a number key).

Linnaeus sent out some of his most promising students on botanical expeditions all over the world, with the task to collect, classify, and name new plants, animals, and minerals using the Linnaeus system. Their activities influenced many expeditions of the day, and spread the word about the new taxonomy. As part of my “plants on the move” theme this year, I have selected four of the Apostles to research:

• Pehr Löfling (1729 – 1756): explored Spain and South America (1751 – 1756). See map key 4.
• Pehr Kalm (1715 – 1779): explored North America and Canada (1747 – 1751). See map key 3.
• Carl Peter Thunberg (1743 – 1828): explored South Africa and Japan (1770 – 1779). See map key 12.
• Daniel Solander (1733 – 1782): explored Australia and Iceland (1768 – 1772). See map key 17.

Most of the apostles sent their collections to Linnaeus, creating a comprehensive botanical collection for the Uppsala University. Most of them had plants or species named after them. I look forward to learning more about these individuals, their discoveries, and this era of exploration.