MeyerAB

Career

Collecting localities

Collections

Literature

Biographical data

Meyer, Adolf Bernhard (actually Aron Baruch)

(Source: Flora Malesiana ser. 1, 1: Cyclopaedia of collectors)

(Source: Flora Malesiana ser. 1, 8: Cyclopaedia of collectors, Supplement II)

Born: 1840, Hamburg, Germany. Died: 1911, Berlin, Germany.

career:

Physician who studied natural history too. When his education was finished he made some travels at his own expense. Since 1874 appointed Director of the Royal Zoological, Anthropological and Ethnographical Museum, Dresden; his interests went especially in those directions,¹ botany was not his object.

He has been much criticized, even by his compatriots;² it is a fact that he contradicts himself in many cases.

Eriolopha meyeri Ridl. was named after him.

Collecting localities:

1870-71. SW. Celebes: Makassar (Nov. 1870); N. Celebes: Minahassa³ and neighbouring islands (Nov. 1870-July 1871), visiting Sangi(he) Isl. and P. Raoeng (March 30,1871); Gorontalo and environs (G. Boliohoeto)⁴ and the Bay of Tomini and the Togean Islands (= Schildpad Isls) (July-Sept.); SW. Celebes (Sept.-Nov.).-1871-72. Philippines,⁴^a and subsequently for a short stay in Europe. 1873. Leaving Vienna (Nov. 14, 1872); Singapore (Dec. 17-31); SW. Celebes: Makassar (Jan. 8-26, 1873); N. Celebes: Gorontalo, Kema; Ternate (Febr. 2-March 3); Dutch NW. New Guinea (Vogelkop):⁵ Bay of Doré (March 13); P. Nufor (= ? Noemfoor) (20-22); Mysore (= Supiori, Schouten Isls); Jobi, Bay of Ansus (P. Japen) (Apr. 8-29); circumnavigating Geelvink Bay, Rubi (May 3-16); crossing from Jerakobe (Geelvink Bay) to Jakati (Maccluer Gulf) (June 10-13);⁶ Bay of Andai (21), organizing 2 trips to the Arfak Mts (respectively June 24-July 4, and July 9-15; according to Meyer the 2nd time Hattam was reached, Wichmann² denies it) in which he did not participate himself on account of illness; leaving Andai (July 17) for Ternate, sailing (Aug. 7), touching at various islands of the Moluccas, Timor (16), Makassar (20), Java and Singapore on the home voyage to Vienna (arriving Oct. 10).

collections:

Herb. Berl. [B]: 122 nos of siphonogams from Celebes; Herb. Kew [K]: 11 New Guinea nos (near Geelvink Bay, Olifantsberg);⁷ Mus. Hamburg [HBG]: fruits in alcohol from N. Celebes (pres. 1902); Herb. Vienna [W]: Luzon plants etc. Collections of his might be at Dresden too.

His labels are untrustworthy.²

literature:

(1) Author of many papers on the Malay Archipelago in the Publications of the Dresden Museum. He wrote on the avifauna of Celebes together with L.W. Wigglesworth (1898).
(2) cf. Wichmann, Entd. Gesch. N.G., in Nova Guinea vol. 2, p. 167-178 (partly copied by Backer in Verkl. Woordenb., 1936); Stresemann in Journ. f. Ornithol. 87, 1939, p. 30.5; cf. also Ind. Gids 10², 1888, p. 1393.
(3) A.B. Meyer: ‘The Minahassa auf Celebes, Sammlung gemeinverständlicher wissenschaftlicher Vorträge’ (edited by R. Virchow and F. Holtzendorff, 2. Series, Heft 262, 1876).
(4) According to Wichmann the ascent is fictive; Meyer says to have climbed the mountain in company with Riedel (see there), but Wichmann believes Meyer and Riedel to be birds of a feather!
(4a) ‘On the Population’ cf. Meyer in Peterm. Geogr. Mitt. 20, 1874, p. 17-19, tbls; and l.c. p. 19-22.
(5) A.B. Meyer: ‘Bericht über eine Reise nach Neu Guinea, unternommen in den Jahren 1872 and 1873’ (Mitt. k.k. Geogr. Ges. Wien 16, 1873, p. 481); ‘Auszüge aus den auf einer Neu-Guinea Reise im Jahre 1873 geführten Tagebüchern als Erläuterung zu den Karten der Geelvink-Bai and des MacCluer-Golfes’ (Dresden 1875, w. maps; cf. p. 18-19 for list of his papers on New Guinea, partly relating to zoology); ‘Anthropologische Mittheilungen über den Papuas von Neu-Guinea. Aeusserer physischer Habitus’ (Batavia 1875).
(6) Wichmann stated the crossing to be fictive too (cf. Peterm. Mitt. 1904, Lit. Ber. no 771); Niermeyer, however, thought this to be unproved (cf. Tijdschr. K.N.A.G. 1905, p. 499).
(7) M. Kuhn: ‘Bemerkungen über einige Farne von Celebes’ (Verb. k.k. Zool. Bot. Ges. Wien 1875, p. 593-602).
D. Oliver: ‘List of plants collected in New Guinea by Dr A.B. Meyer, sent to Kew, December 1874’ (Journ. Linn. Soc. But. 15, 1877, p. 29-30). For some beach plants the locality ‘Olifantsberg’ is given!

biographical data:

Encyclop. N.I. 2, 1918; Backer, Verkl. Woordenb., 1936.

	Career Collecting localities Collections Literature Biographical data
	Meyer, Adolf Bernhard (actually Aron Baruch)
	(Source: Flora Malesiana ser. 1, 1: Cyclopaedia of collectors) (Source: Flora Malesiana ser. 1, 8: Cyclopaedia of collectors, Supplement II)
	Born: 1840, Hamburg, Germany. Died: 1911, Berlin, Germany.
	career: Physician who studied natural history too. When his education was finished he made some travels at his own expense. Since 1874 appointed Director of the Royal Zoological, Anthropological and Ethnographical Museum, Dresden; his interests went especially in those directions,¹ botany was not his object. He has been much criticized, even by his compatriots;² it is a fact that he contradicts himself in many cases. Eriolopha meyeri Ridl. was named after him.
	Collecting localities: 1870-71. SW. Celebes: Makassar (Nov. 1870); N. Celebes: Minahassa³ and neighbouring islands (Nov. 1870-July 1871), visiting Sangi(he) Isl. and P. Raoeng (March 30,1871); Gorontalo and environs (G. Boliohoeto)⁴ and the Bay of Tomini and the Togean Islands (= Schildpad Isls) (July-Sept.); SW. Celebes (Sept.-Nov.).-1871-72. Philippines,⁴^a and subsequently for a short stay in Europe. 1873. Leaving Vienna (Nov. 14, 1872); Singapore (Dec. 17-31); SW. Celebes: Makassar (Jan. 8-26, 1873); N. Celebes: Gorontalo, Kema; Ternate (Febr. 2-March 3); Dutch NW. New Guinea (Vogelkop):⁵ Bay of Doré (March 13); P. Nufor (= ? Noemfoor) (20-22); Mysore (= Supiori, Schouten Isls); Jobi, Bay of Ansus (P. Japen) (Apr. 8-29); circumnavigating Geelvink Bay, Rubi (May 3-16); crossing from Jerakobe (Geelvink Bay) to Jakati (Maccluer Gulf) (June 10-13);⁶ Bay of Andai (21), organizing 2 trips to the Arfak Mts (respectively June 24-July 4, and July 9-15; according to Meyer the 2nd time Hattam was reached, Wichmann² denies it) in which he did not participate himself on account of illness; leaving Andai (July 17) for Ternate, sailing (Aug. 7), touching at various islands of the Moluccas, Timor (16), Makassar (20), Java and Singapore on the home voyage to Vienna (arriving Oct. 10).
	collections: Herb. Berl. [B]: 122 nos of siphonogams from Celebes; Herb. Kew [K]: 11 New Guinea nos (near Geelvink Bay, Olifantsberg);⁷ Mus. Hamburg [HBG]: fruits in alcohol from N. Celebes (pres. 1902); Herb. Vienna [W]: Luzon plants etc. Collections of his might be at Dresden too. His labels are untrustworthy.²
	literature: (1) Author of many papers on the Malay Archipelago in the Publications of the Dresden Museum. He wrote on the avifauna of Celebes together with L.W. Wigglesworth (1898). (2) cf. Wichmann, Entd. Gesch. N.G., in Nova Guinea vol. 2, p. 167-178 (partly copied by Backer in Verkl. Woordenb., 1936); Stresemann in Journ. f. Ornithol. 87, 1939, p. 30.5; cf. also Ind. Gids 10², 1888, p. 1393. (3) A.B. Meyer: ‘The Minahassa auf Celebes, Sammlung gemeinverständlicher wissenschaftlicher Vorträge’ (edited by R. Virchow and F. Holtzendorff, 2. Series, Heft 262, 1876). (4) According to Wichmann the ascent is fictive; Meyer says to have climbed the mountain in company with Riedel (see there), but Wichmann believes Meyer and Riedel to be birds of a feather! (4a) ‘On the Population’ cf. Meyer in Peterm. Geogr. Mitt. 20, 1874, p. 17-19, tbls; and l.c. p. 19-22. (5) A.B. Meyer: ‘Bericht über eine Reise nach Neu Guinea, unternommen in den Jahren 1872 and 1873’ (Mitt. k.k. Geogr. Ges. Wien 16, 1873, p. 481); ‘Auszüge aus den auf einer Neu-Guinea Reise im Jahre 1873 geführten Tagebüchern als Erläuterung zu den Karten der Geelvink-Bai and des MacCluer-Golfes’ (Dresden 1875, w. maps; cf. p. 18-19 for list of his papers on New Guinea, partly relating to zoology); ‘Anthropologische Mittheilungen über den Papuas von Neu-Guinea. Aeusserer physischer Habitus’ (Batavia 1875). (6) Wichmann stated the crossing to be fictive too (cf. Peterm. Mitt. 1904, Lit. Ber. no 771); Niermeyer, however, thought this to be unproved (cf. Tijdschr. K.N.A.G. 1905, p. 499). (7) M. Kuhn: ‘Bemerkungen über einige Farne von Celebes’ (Verb. k.k. Zool. Bot. Ges. Wien 1875, p. 593-602). D. Oliver: ‘List of plants collected in New Guinea by Dr A.B. Meyer, sent to Kew, December 1874’ (Journ. Linn. Soc. But. 15, 1877, p. 29-30). For some beach plants the locality ‘Olifantsberg’ is given!
	biographical data: Encyclop. N.I. 2, 1918; Backer, Verkl. Woordenb., 1936.