Epilogue: the Plantae Tinneanae

Summary

During the first stage of their journey, Theodor von Heuglin and Hermann Steudner often searched for good spots where they could gather samples of species of fauna and flora. As was usual in those days, scientists were engaged in the practice of acquiring knowledge about phenomena in several fields of science. Following the tradition of practically all other Africa travellers (until deep into the twentieth century), Heuglin was a lover of hunting, which was opportune in assembling zoological specimens. Although he regarded zoology as his principal field, he also devoted himself equally to the study of ethnographic and floral specimens. After the death of the botanist Steudner in Wau on 10 May 1863, he took over the task of collecting plants and flowers in the Bahr el-Ghazal area.

The most favourable season for practicing botanic research was the summer when the rains produced a sudden outburst of luxuriant vegetation. Unfortunately, he was struck by fevers and diarrhoea at that time and was forced to abandon this job. It was only when the dry period had set in and most of the blossoms and flowers had already vanished that Heuglin could continue his task. Although he worked rapidly, he had little time left. His endeavours only resulted in some eighty samples for his botanical collection. He wrote to François Unger, then professor of botany in Vienna, to arrange for the plants to be displayed at the Imperial Herbarium in Vienna. The well-known botanist Theodor Kotschy was asked to write the descriptions for the exhibition.

At the same time Heuglin demanded from Kotschy that, by accepting this collection, he took the obligation to publish a list of the newly discovered plants and flowers in order to launch its publication, and to return the drawings which Heuglin had made of the prepared samples. It was only by chance that Heuglin found out that the collection had been exhibited in the Wiener Herbarium and that in 1867 John Tinne had helped to publish the promised book on the collection. In that year, Karl Gerold Sohn in Vienna had been commissioned to publish Plantae Tinneanae. On the front page it was clearly stated that the book was dedicated to ‘Sa Majesté Sophie Frédérique Mathilde Reine des Pays Bas’, or Queen Sophie of the Netherlands, who by then had stopped sending letters to Alexine beseeching her to return home.