Johann Heinrich Robert Göppert (25 July 1800 – 18 May 1884) was a German botanist and

paleontologist Paleontology (), also spelled palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of life that existed prior to, and sometimes including, the start of the Holocene epoch (roughly 11,700 years before present). It includes the study of fossi ...

Career

He was born in Sprottau,

Lower Silesia Lower Silesia ( pl, Dolny Śląsk; cz, Dolní Slezsko; german: Niederschlesien; szl, Dolny Ślōnsk; hsb, Delnja Šleska; dsb, Dolna Šlazyńska; Silesian German: ''Niederschläsing''; la, Silesia Inferior) is the northwestern part of the ...

, and died at Breslau. In 1831 he became a professor of botany, as well as

curator A curator (from la, cura, meaning "to take care") is a manager or overseer. When working with cultural organizations, a curator is typically a "collections curator" or an "exhibitions curator", and has multifaceted tasks dependent on the parti ...

of the

botanical garden A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...

s in Breslau. In 1852 he became director of the botanical gardens. He is particularly known for his work in paleobotany, being the author of many articles in this field. Göppert performed extensive research on the formation of coal and

amber Amber is fossilized tree resin that has been appreciated for its color and natural beauty since Neolithic times. Much valued from antiquity to the present as a gemstone, amber is made into a variety of decorative objects."Amber" (2004). In ...

, and also conducted comparison studies between existing and fossil flora. In 1840, he demonstrated existence of plant cells in microscopic preparations of hard coal, which concluded a long-lasting debate on the origin of coal. His private collection of specimens of fossil flora was considered the finest in the world. He was the father of a notable lawyer, Heinrich Robert Göppert, grandfather of Friedrich Göppert and great-grandfather of

Maria Goeppert-Mayer Maria Goeppert Mayer (; June 28, 1906 – February 20, 1972) was a German-born American theoretical physicist, and Nobel laureate in Physics for proposing the nuclear shell model of the atomic nucleus. She was the second woman to win a Nobel Pri ...

(Nobel Prize in physics, 1963). In 1861 he became foreign member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences. In 1862, he was elected as a member of the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...

. Göppert was a critic of Darwinism. In 1864 and 1865 he published papers criticising

Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all species of life have descended ...

's theory of common descent from research in botanical palaeontology.Frederick, Burkhardt. (2004). ''The Correspondence of Charles Darwin:, Volume 14; Volume 1866''. Cambridge University Press. p. 30. Pomnik Heinrich Goeppert Szprotawa

Family house of botanist Heinrich Goeppert in Szprotawa (Sprottau)

Selected writings

* ''Die fossilen Farnkräuter'' (On fossil

fern A fern (Polypodiopsida or Polypodiophyta ) is a member of a group of vascular plants (plants with xylem and phloem) that reproduce via spores and have neither seeds nor flowers. The polypodiophytes include all living pteridophytes exce ...

s) - (1836). * ''De floribus in statu fossili'' (1837). * ''De coniferarum structura anatomica'' (Anatomical structure of conifers) - (1841). * ''Die Gattungen der fossilen Pflanzen, verglichen mit denen der Jetztzeit'' (Types of the fossil plants, and comparison to those of the present) - (1841–42). * ''Ueber die chemischen Gegengifte, zum Gebrauche für Ärzte, Wundärzte und Pharmaceuten, so wie für academische Vorlesungen : mit 1 Tab.'' . Max, Berlin 2. Ausg. 184
Digital edition
by the University and State Library Düsseldorf. * ''Der Bernstein und die in ihm befindlichen Pflanzenreste der Vorwelt'' (with

Georg Karl Berendt Georg Karl (or Carl) Berendt (13 July 1790 – 4 January 1850) was a German physician and paleontologist who was a native of Danzig. He studied medicine and botany at the University of Königsberg, and from 1814 practiced medicine in Danzig. He is ...

, 1845). * ''Abhandlungen über die Entstehung der Steinkohlenlager aus Pflanzen'' (1848). * ''Abhandlung über die Beschaffenheit der fossilen Flora in verschiedenen Steinkohlenablagerungen eines und desselben Reviers'' (Condition of fossil flora in different hard coal deposits) - (1849). * ''Monographie der fossilen Koniferen, verglichen mit denen der Jetztwelt'' (Monograph on fossil conifers) - (1850). * ''Beiträge zur Tertiärflora Schlesiens'' (Contributions to

Tertiary Tertiary ( ) is a widely used but obsolete term for the geologic period from 66 million to 2.6 million years ago. The period began with the demise of the non-avian dinosaurs in the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, at the start ...

flora in

Silesia Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split ...

) (1852). * ''Die Tertiärflora von Schoßnitz in Schlesien'' (Tertiary flora of Schossnitz) (1855). * ''Die Tertiärflora auf der Insel Java'' (Tertiary flora of the Island of

Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's mos ...

) (1855). * ''Über die fossile Flora der silurischen, der devonischen und der untern Kohlenformation'' (Fossil flora of the Silurian & Devonian Periods in regards to coal formation) - (1860). * ''Die fossile Flora der permischen Formation'' (Fossil flora of mixed formation) (1864–65). * ''Über Aphyllostachys, eine neue fossile Pflanzengattung, sowie über das Verhältnis der fossilen Flora zu Darwins Transmutationstheorie'' (

Phyllostachys ''Phyllostachys'' () is a genus of Asian bamboo in the grass family. Many of the species are found in central and southern China, with a few species in northern Indochina and in the Himalayas. Some of the species have become naturalized in parts ...

, a new fossil type; on the relationship of fossil flora to Darwin's theory of transmutation) - (1866).

References

* "This article is based on a translation of text from an equivalent article at the German Wikipedia".

External links

* 1800 births 1884 deaths People from Szprotawa People from the Province of Silesia 19th-century German botanists University of Breslau faculty German paleontologists Paleobotanists Members of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences {{Germany-botanist-stub