Publication details
Kruhatka Matthiolova (Cortusa matthioli) v Sudetech aneb anti-Hendrych
| Title in English | Once again on Cortusa matthioli in the Sudeten Mountains (Czech Republic): challenging Prof. Hendrych’s methods and beliefs |
|---|---|
| Authors | |
| Year of publication | 2011 |
| Type | Article in Periodical |
| Magazine / Source | Zprávy České botanické společnosti |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Field | Botany |
| Keywords | Central Europe; C. Schwenckfelt; history of botany; P. A. Matthiolus; Primulaceae |
| Attached files | |
| Description | In 2003, the late Professor Radovan Hendrych published a study in which he argued that Cortusa matthioli, currently known in Czechia only from one site in the Moravian Karst in southern Moravia, had occurred in the Krkonoše Mts in northern Bohemia and in the Hrubý Jeseník Mts in northern Moravia until the 16th and 19th century, respectively. He based his opinion on the description of C. matthioli in a natural history book, Stirpium et fossilium Silesiae catalogus, by C. Schwenckfelt (published in 1600), in which the species is said to occur in the valleys of the Krkonoše Mts, and on a specimen of C. matthioli, now deposited in the herbarium of the Silesian Museum in Opava (OP), reportedly collected by F. von Mückusch (1749–1837) near the town of Jeseník. A comparison of the Cortusa description by Schwenckfelt with the protologue published by Matthioli in 1565 and with illustrations in some other contemporary herbals has shown that C. Schwenckfelt may have never seen the plant himself as he only modified and abridged earlier descriptions in an inappropriate manner, including the statement about white flowers. Hendrych’s speculations about abundant stands of Cortusa in the Krkonoše mountain valleys, used as supporting argument, are based on his wrong translation of the original Latin text. The Mückusch specimen, first reported on by Josef Duda 60 years ago, is one of dozens of specimens of thermophilous, Carpathian or other species, reportedly collected or seen by Mückusch in northern Moravia or in the adjacent part of Silesia. However, even their former presence in the region is very unlikely for ecological and phytogeographical reasons, and therefore, the locality information given in floras or on the labels has to be considered untruthful; Mückusch may have acquired the specimens by exchange with other contemporary botanists. Therefore, there exists no evidence even for historical occurrence of C. matthioli in northern Bohemia and northern Moravia. |
| Related projects: |