Linnaeus at the National Library.

Terry, Martin

2007 has marked the tercentenary of the birth of one of the world's most influential natural scientists, Carl Linnaeus (1707-1778). In recognition, the National Library has mounted an exhibition of paintings and documents that will be on display until 6 April 2008.

The 'System of Nature'

Linnaeus largely invented the way the natural world is described. While changes have been made to accommodate new knowledge, his 'system of nature'--a hierarchical descent from three kingdoms to genus and species--remains largely intact. Equally, Linnaeus' 'binomial' method of classification, where every species has a unique two-name identifier, is still in use.

The appeal of Linnaeus' system was that it was clear, logical, flexible and universal. Where, for example, in the medieval world plants had been identified by their medicinal properties, now they were grouped according to their number of pistils and stamens--the means by which plants are pollinated. The impact of Linnaeus' system alone would merit commemoration, but in Australia, and at the National Library particularly, it has a special resonance.

From the time of the voyage of HMS Endeavour, Australia's natural history has been classified according to Linnaean principles. As Joseph Banks stated in a letter to Linnaeus' son, 'I have invariably studied by the rules of his System, under your learned friend Dr Solander'. Solander had been one of Linnaeus' most ardent pupils--an 'apostle'--and was both mentor and friend to the younger Banks. Banks, in turn, was an influential patron and was critical in the appointments of botanists Robert Brown, Allan Cunningham and George Caley, all of whom collected specimens in Australia.

Works on Display

The National Library has a wide-ranging collection of publications and pictures illustrative of Linnaeus' life and his impact upon Australian science and settlement, and many of these are displayed in the current exhibition. Systema Naturae is among his most important books. It grew from a modest pamphlet to a great catalogue of the living world, by 1758 describing 4400 animals and 7700 species of plants.

On his return from an expedition to northern Sweden, Linnaeus had himself portrayed as a Laplander, stagecraft that Banks emulated when he posed as a Maori chief for artist Benjamin West. The broader public, however, saw the new-found interest in botany as a source of satire, and Daniel Solander was depicted as a 'simpling macaroni'--simpling being the gathering and study of medicinal plants.

The banksia is one of Australia's showiest plants. Named by Linnaeus' son, it quickly became an emblem of the faraway colony of New South Wales. It is a challenge for a botanical artist, and one of the most accomplished early renderings of it was made by James Sowerby. Sowerby had illustrated William Curtis' Flora Londinensis and The Botanical Magazine, both of which are also held by the National Library.

Finally, there is the massive work known as the 'Banks Florilegium'. In a fit of enthusiasm after his return to England in 1771 on board the Endeavour, Banks proposed to publish the flora collected on the expedition. Artists were employed to finish the drawings begun by Sydney Parkinson, who had died during the voyage, and engravers began preparing the expensive copper plates. Over 700 were engraved at great cost to Banks, and his interest began to wane. What would have been his magnum opus was unrealised during his lifetime. There have been several attempts to fulfil Banks' vision but only in the 1980s did it come to pass, with the publication by Alecto Historical Editions of what is arguably the world's greatest work dedicated to botany. It is also a fitting tribute to the great Linnaeus, without whose influence such a project would never have been undertaken.

Martin Terry

Curator, Exhibitions