Georg Adolf Keferstein (October 10, 1793 – November 28, 1884) was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...

(most recently in

Erfurt Erfurt () is the capital (political), capital and largest city of the Central Germany (cultural area), Central German state of Thuringia, with a population of around 216,000. It lies in the wide valley of the Gera (river), River Gera, in the so ...

) and

entomologist Entomology (from Ancient Greek ἔντομον (''éntomon''), meaning "insect", and -logy from λόγος (''lógos''), meaning "study") is the branch of zoology that focuses on insects. Those who study entomology are known as entomologists. In ...

. Georg Keferstein was born in

Halle (Saale) Halle (Saale), or simply Halle (), is the second largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony-Anhalt. It is the sixth-most populous city in the area of former East Germany after (East Berlin, East) Berlin, Leipzig, Dresden, Chem ...

, and collected butterflies from his youth and published specifically on the history of entomology, for example about the

silkworm ''Bombyx mori'', commonly known as the domestic silk moth, is a moth species belonging to the family Bombycidae. It is the closest relative of '' Bombyx mandarina'', the wild silk moth. Silkworms are the larvae of silk moths. The silkworm is of ...

antiquity Antiquity or Antiquities may refer to: Historical objects or periods Artifacts *Antiquities, objects or artifacts surviving from ancient cultures Eras Any period before the European Middle Ages (5th to 15th centuries) but still within the histo ...

. An example is Der Bombyx oder Bombylius des Aristoteles als Seide hervorbringendes ''Insekt. Verhandlungen k.u.k. Zoolog.-Botan. Ges. Wien'', 1882. He published in the ''Revue Entomologique'' edited by Gustave Silbermann, in ''Isis'' edited by

Lorenz Oken Lorenz Oken (1 August 1779 – 11 August 1851) was a Germans, German natural history, naturalist, botany, botanist, biologist, and ornithology, ornithologist. Biography Oken was born Lorenz Okenfuss () in Bohlsbach (now part of Offenburg), Ortena ...

, in the proceedings of the Imperial Zoological and Botanical Society and in the Szczecin Entomology Journal. First descriptions from his extensive collection were mostly by Gottlieb August Herrich-Schäffer. He himself described '' Tritonaclia tollini'' amongst other species. The Keferstein collection is held by the

University of Halle Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (), also referred to as MLU, is a public research university in the cities of Halle and Wittenberg. It is the largest and oldest university in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. MLU offers German and i ...

together with his valuable entomological library. Keferstein was a member of the Halle

Masonic Lodge A Masonic lodge (also called Freemasons' lodge, or private lodge or constituent lodge) is the basic organisational unit of Freemasonry. It is also a commonly used term for a building where Freemasons meet and hold their meetings. Every new l ...

. He died in Erfurt.

References

Gaedike, R.; Groll, E. K. & Taeger, A. 2012: Bibliography of the entomological literature from the beginning until 1863 : online database – version 1.0 – Senckenberg Deutsches Entomologisches Institut.
*Groll, E. K. 2017: Biographies of the Entomologists of the World. – Online database, version 8, Senckenberg Deutsches Entomologisches Institut, Müncheberg – URL: sdei.senckenberg.de/biografies {{DEFAULTSORT:Keferstein, Georg Adolf German lepidopterists 1884 deaths 1793 births Lawyers from the Kingdom of Prussia Zoologists from the Kingdom of Prussia People from Halle (Saale) 19th-century German lawyers 19th-century German zoologists German Freemasons