Botanical
Exploration and Floras in Syria and
Lebanon 1750-1950
Lytton John Musselman
Old Dominion University
16 October 2008
Botanical
Exploration and Floras in Syria and
Lebanon 1750-1950
Lytton John Musselman
Old Dominion University
Botanical
Exploration and Floras in Syria and
Lebanon 1750-1950
Botanists and Floras
Current Status of their Herbaria
What can we learn from their activities?
Botanists and Floras
The Botanists 1750-1950
Andre Michaux 1746-1802
Edmond Boissier 1810-1885
Charles Isodore Blanche 1825-1887
Botanists and Floras
Some Botanical Pioneers 1750-1950
George Edward Post 1838-1909
John Edward Dinsmore 1862-1951
Francois Andre Michaux 1746-1802
Born near Versailles,
France
Died in Madagascar
Best known for his work in North
America but started out in the Levant
accompanying the new French consul,
Rousseau, bound for Persia.
Landed at Iskanderun 31 March 1782
. . .Antakya 11 April 1782
. . .Halab 14 April 1782
Visited Latakia while waiting in Halab
From Halab, Michaux sent back to
Paris herbarium specimens, seeds,
and archeological artifacts.
. . . and on to Baghdad and Persia
??
Because of his success in the
Levant, Michaux was appointed
King’s Botanist to the United States
and became a pioneer botanist
there as well.
In the southern
United States,
Michaux is best
known for his
treatment of
trees
Rhus michauxii, a
federally endangered
species we are
studying
Botanists in the
southeastern
United States come
in contact with
Michaux constantly
either with plants
named by or for him
Michaux is
appropriately
commemorated
in the beautiful
genus Michauxia
which is common
Michauxia campanuloides
in the region of the
Levant he traveled.
Michaux collected but did not describe
the genus.
Michaux’s specimens are in a
special herbarium at the
L'HERBIER DU MUSÉUM NATIONAL
D'HISTOIRE NATURELLE
“On peut citer les herbiers de JUSSIEU,
de LAMARCK, de TOURNEFORT,
d'ADANSON, de HUMBOLDT & BONPLAND,
de MICHAUX,
de DESFONTAINES ... “
Pierre Edmond
Boissier
1810-1885
Born and
died in Geneva
Independently wealthy,
Boissier devoted himself to
botany under the tutelage
of the great Alphonse de Candolle.
Boissier traveled extensively but made
only one trip to the Middle East, in
1845/1846 to Egypt, Arabia, Palestine
and Syria.
His great contribution to botany was
the Flora Orientalis, completed in 1884
which covered a large part of western
Asia, a remarkable undertaking for its
time.
Approximate area covered by the Flora Orientalis
He excluded most of Asian Turkey for biogeographical
reasons
Boissier’s flora
was revolutionary
by being multivolume and
meticulously
documented by
herbarium
specimens.
Boissier and his co-workers placed
special emphasis on herbarium
specimens. His specimens are extant
in the Boissier Herbarium at the
Conservatoire et Jardin botaniques
de la Ville de Genève.
Boissier Herbarium building, Geneva
Charles Isodore Blanche
1823-1887
Little is known of his life
Blanche was a student of
Boissier and regularly collected
for him and sent material to
Geneva from Tripoli where he
lived for some time.
Blanche apparently collected throughout
the region as this label from the mountains
suggests.
George
Edward
Post
1838-1909
Born in New York City
Died in Beirut
I have discussed his life elsewhere
Archives of natural history 33 (2): 282–301. 2006 © L. J. Musselman 2006.
The botanical activities of George Edward Post (1838–1909)
LYTTON JOHN MUSSELMAN
Department of Biological Sciences, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, Virginia 23529-0266, USA (e-mail:
lmusselm@odu.edu).
Studied Latin
at age of six.
Graduated with
honors from City
College of New
York in 1854 at
age 16. M. S.
degree in
1857.
Early Years
Little is known of Post’s
formal training in botany.
Physicians trained in the
mid-1800s were required to
take Materia medica and
other plant-oriented courses.
Post began an herbarium as a teenager,
perhaps in company with his father who
also collected plants.
Post settled in Tripoli in 1863 and began
medical practice and study of Arabic.
Modern day Tripoli from the harbor.
Soon after settling in Tripoli,
Post collected plants. Between
1866 and 1869 he visited
several areas in modern day
Lebanon and Syria.
In Tripoli, Post became acquainted with
Boissier’s student, C I Blanche, who
annotated some of Post’s specimens
In 1869 he moved to Beirut where
he remained the rest of his life.
He was appointed Professor of Surgery
at Syrian Protestant College, now the
American University of Beirut
Post joined an
illustrious group
of scholars
including Cornelius
V. A. Van Dyck,
Professor of
Chemistry and
Surgery.
In a paper
published in 1848,
Van Dyck
bemoaned the
lack of botanical
research in the
region.
Thus, Post began his botanical career
in the Levant with
*botanical training as an undergraduate
*contact with the leading botanist of
the Orient, Boissier, through Blanche
*a faculty committed to botanical
research
He immediately began work on
establishing a botany program at the
college by
*extensive field work
*correspondence and exchange with
leading botanists
*publishing
*establishment of an herbarium
Expeditions
These expeditions were for
natural history and archeology.
He visited Sinai in 1883 and also traveled
down the Nile.
Post had an interest in archeology. He
led to an expedition to Palmyra
(Tadmur) in 1890.
Post collected
many plants from
the Hauran Region
southeast of
Damascus and
named new taxa.
These include
Chaerophyllum auranitacum,
Cynara auranitica, Dianthus
auraniticus, and Ferulago
auranitica.
Post also received
specimens from Mardin
and vicinity from an
unknown source (Mrs.
Shepard?) and named
these new species:
Nepeta mardinensis and
Verbascum mardinense.
Mrs Shepard, was a
physician living in Aintab
(Gaziantep).
He named several plants in
her honor including Achillaea
shepardi, Astragalus
shephardi, Campanula
shepardi,Centaurea
shepardi, Erigeron shepardi,
Knautia shepardi, Medicago
shepardi, and Nepeta
shepardi.
Post incorporated Shepard’s specimens
under his own name.
Labels from the type
Specimen of
Ferulago kurdica.
Cyprus 1898
Papaver postiii Fedde
Post visited western Turkey on several
occasions to represent the medical
college to Ottoman authorities and to visit
his son, Bartram Van Dyck Post, a
Professor of Botany and Zoology at Robert
College.
Bartram Van Dyck Post carried on the
Post family tradition of botany. He
published one of the first floras of the
Bosphorus region.
Examples of Post’s
labels from Turkey.
His last trip to Turkey was apparently
in 1903.
Post maintained contact with
leading botanists not only in the
Middle East but in Europe and
North America. Collections from
these botanists enriched his
herbarium.
“For my part, I never
accepted to any degree the
Darwinian theory. . . .”
Post’s copy of
Boissier where he
wrote many notes
including this
underline
of Boissier’s view on
evolution.
Correspondents-Exchange
Specimens extant in Post Herbarium
Balfour, Royal Botanic Garden,
Edinburgh
Boissier
(collected by
Haussknecht)
Gaillardot
Hulsen
LeTourneux
Tauscher
Schweinfurth,
who sent
plants from
Egypt.
Inscription in Schweinfurth’s
Flora Aethiopiens to Dr. G. Post by
J. Ascherson
Aznavour
Annotations
The numerous annotations on
specimens in the Post Herbarium
attest to its international importance.
Botanists who examined specimens
include
Nikolay Ivanoich Vavilov,
St. Petersburg
Alexander Eig,
Jerusalem
In addition to specimen exchange,
Post carried on extensive
correspondence with world botanists.
To date, I have located letters from the
following:
Autran, Boissier Herbarium, Geneva
Balfour, Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh
Baker, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
Barbey, Boissier Herbarium Geneva
Boissier, Boissier Herbarium Geneva
Carruthers, British Museum-Natural History, London
Denslow, University of Massachusetts, USA
Gibelli, Botanical Garden, Turin
Gray, Harvard University, USA
Hooker, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
Schweinfurth, Egypt
Thistleton-Dyer, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
Plants Named
for George Post
Genera
Postia Boiss. et Blanc.
Postiella Kljuykov
Species
Centaurea postii Boiss.
Papaver postii Fedde
Tracheliopsis postii
Buser
Papaver postii
Did Post “specialize” in
any groups? His interest
spanned all angiosperms
but he named more species
(14) of Verbascum than any
other group including:
Verbascum aintabicum, V. aliciae, V. antari,
V. barbeyi, V. boissieri, V. caudatum, V.
fruticulosum, V. gadarense, V. karyeteini ,
V. macranthum, V. mardinense, V.
palmyrense, V. porteri, and V. qulebicum.
Lebanese species
of Verbascum
Botanical publications of George Post
Post’s flora
first appeared
in Arabic but
apparently only
the first volume
was completed.
Plants of Syria and Palestine
and the Egyptian sector and
their deserts.
Post’s flora
first appeared
in Arabic but
apparently only
the first volume
was completed.
Volume one which includes
forty nine families from the
Ranunculaceae to the Cornaceae.
Written by Dr. George Post, member
of the Torrey Botanical Club,
New York and the Botanical Society
of Edinburgh and former teacher
of botany at the Evangelical School
Beirut.
Printed in Beirut 1884
In addition to his
better known botanical
works, Post edited a
medical journal in
Arabic and translated
several books.
Post’s best known
work. It was
completed in 1896
after being issued
in parts over a
period of about 19
years.
126 Families
830 Genera
3500 Species
Most of the plants named by Post
were described in a series called
Plantae Postianae published by the
Boissier Herbarium in Geneva.
Post also
contributed
flora and fauna
entries for
several widely
distributed Bible
dictionaries.
Post Script—George Edward
Post and the Post Herbarium
The herbarium of George Post
In 1904, the
herbarium was
moved to Science
Hall (later called
Post Hall) where it
apparently
remained until
1953. It is now
housed in the
Faculty of
Agriculture.
Post Hall on the AUB campus
Components of the Collection
1. Collections of
George Post--the
bulk of the
herbarium.
2. Specimens added
after Post, i.e., after
1909.
Post Collection
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Specimens collected by George Post.
Specimens obtained by exchange.
Materia Medica.
Economic Botany Collection.
Tropical Ferns-Dodge collection.
Bryophytes from Ceylon and Hawaii.
Fungi from Budapest Museum.
• TOTAL: Ca. 60 000 specimens
The post-Post Post Herbarium
• Alfred Ely Day was appointed Professor
of Botany after Post’s death in 1909.
• In 1922, the herbarium was apparently
transferred to pharmacy. Day was
appointed Professor of Botany in
Pharmacy.
The post-Post Post Herbarium
• John Edward Dinsmore of the American
Colony in Jerusalem begin his revision of
Post’s flora in the 1920’s.
• This led to the cataloging of all the specimens
in the herbarium in the 1930’s.
The post-Post Post Herbarium
Catalog prepared
by Tateos V.
Yegavian in 193031. Yegavian was a
business student.
Each sheet is recorded with
name, synonym, collector,
location, annotation
information, and date.
The post-Post Post Herbarium
This catalog provides an accurate
account of the collection as it
existed in the early 1930 and can be
consulted to see which of the original
specimens are still intact.
The post-Post Post Herbarium
At least up to 1931, some curatorial
work was done in the herbarium.
Elie Hammam was an Instructor of
Botany who Dinsmore corresponded
with regarding herbarium matters.
(Hamman met his untimely death falling off Mt.
Sannine at age 23).
John Edward Dinsmore
Born 1862 in Winslow, Maine
Died 1951 in Jerusalem
Despite his contribution to botany very
little is known about Dinsmore
John Edward Dinsmore
A. B. 1883
A. M. (Medical Degree) 1884
M. S. 1886
John Edward Dinsmore
Headmaster at Lincoln Academy,
Newcastle, Maine
1893-1896
American Colony, Jerusalem
Founded in 1881 by a Christian utopian
society, disbanded ~1950
After 1930,
it was no
longer a
religious
organization
Dinsmore joined the American Colony
in Jerusalem in 1898 accompanied
by his wife and daughter. His daughter
married a colony member and lived in
Jerusalem.
American Colony, Jerusalem
Dinsmore obviously joined this
commune on religious convictions as
members did not initially believe in
schooling their children nor did they
believe in professional medical
treatment.
The American Colony established a
successful seed store in which
Dinsmore worked. He also taught in
British government schools in
Jerusalem.
While at the American Colony,
Post and Dinsmore had contact
From Post’s personal annotated copy of his flora. Jafet Library, AUB.
Dinsmore maintained contact with
the Post Herbarium after Post died
In this letter for a recipe
for poisoning, Dinsmore
mentions specimens
sent from the Hebrew
University to Beirut where
he obviously had contact.
Like Post, Dinsmore communicated
with the herbarium in Geneva
and corresponded with the
director, Chodat, and the conservator,
Beauverd
Dinsmore Publications
I. Revised Post Flora 1935
II. Nomenclature
III. Pamphlets
144 Families
956 Genera
4215 Species
Dinsmore states part
of this increase
in number of taxa
is due to including
cultivated plants
126 Families
830 Genera
3500 Species
Keys in the
Post/Dinsmore
flora are difficult,
if not impossible,
to use
Pistil 1, but styles or stigmas sometimes multiple.
Ovary 8-30 celled; ovules on septa; aquatics. Nymphaeaceae, iv
Ovary 5-celled; stamens 1-adelphous; anthers reniform. Hibiscus, 169
Ovary of 5 cells united (at maturity) by twisted styles. Monsonia, 179
Ovary 5-celled; stamens 10-12; saprophytic. Monotropa, 536
Ovary 2-5-celled.
New figures were drawn by a teacher in
the AUB
Postia is now
prep school
in the genus
Rhanteriopsis
from liquid
preserved
specimens.
333 new
figures
were
prepared.
Fasciculus 1 deals largely with
valid publication of names used
by Post but not described.
Fasciculus 2 includes additions and
corrections for the Dinsmore flora
as well as 14 new species of Iris
and 1 Tulipa.
Like other botanists of the Levant,
Dinsmore paid special attention to
Iris.
Irises were apparently a specialty of
the Colony Seed Store, Vester and Co.
This publication
reflects the interest
of the Colony’s
seed and garden
business.
In addition to the
revision of the Post
flora, Dinsmore
apparently published
a booklet on Iris as
well as this pamphlet.
Many of his specimens are at
Amsterdam, Lund, and Harvard.
Botanists and Floras
The Botanists 1750-1950
Andre Michaux 1746-1802
Edmond Boissier 1810-1885
Charles Isodore Blanche 1825-1887
George Edward Post 1838-1909
John Edward Dinsmore 1862-1951
What can we learn from these
pioneers?
*Dedication
*Exploration
*Communication--Floras and other
publications
*Documentation--Herbaria
‫شكرا‬
Thanks!!