The Herbarium of the University of Torino, Italy: preliminary results of an analysis of the phanerogamic collections. The Herbarium of the University of Torino is one of the most prestigious of Italy (Moggi, 1988). The phanerogamic collections, whose origin is seldom documented at the moment of their acquisition, are arranged according to a systematic-numerical and geographical order. Consequently, seriously limited are the historical-biographic accounts regarding the botanists who set up the various collections and their qualitative and quantitative evaluation. The 1,164 folders of the phanerogamic section of the Herbarium Generale (TO-HG) were analyzed to detect the origin of the specimens which had been included and to investigate the documents (manuscripts, letters, iconographic tables) associated with the exsiccata. About 193,000 samples were examined and specimens of significant scientific and historical interest, yet scarcely documented or completely unknown, were identified. Research allowed to obtain a precise evaluation of many collections, although the content of some of them and the modality of their acquisition are still to be attained. The extremely large number of specimens of exotic flora obtained through exchanges, with particular regard to Egypt, was documented; exsiccata which belonged to botanists whose personal collections were considered lost, as well as samples referable to F. Vitman, G. Lavy and G. Tagliabue, were recognized. Furthermore, the archival and iconographic material associated with the specimens inserted in TO-HG represents a legacy which adds a substantial historical value to the scientific importance of the exsiccata.
L’Erbario dell’Università di Torino: risultati preliminari del censimento delle collezioni fanerogamiche
FORNERIS, Giuliana;GUGLIELMONE, Laura;PANDOLFO, Guglielmo
2008-01-01
Abstract
The Herbarium of the University of Torino, Italy: preliminary results of an analysis of the phanerogamic collections. The Herbarium of the University of Torino is one of the most prestigious of Italy (Moggi, 1988). The phanerogamic collections, whose origin is seldom documented at the moment of their acquisition, are arranged according to a systematic-numerical and geographical order. Consequently, seriously limited are the historical-biographic accounts regarding the botanists who set up the various collections and their qualitative and quantitative evaluation. The 1,164 folders of the phanerogamic section of the Herbarium Generale (TO-HG) were analyzed to detect the origin of the specimens which had been included and to investigate the documents (manuscripts, letters, iconographic tables) associated with the exsiccata. About 193,000 samples were examined and specimens of significant scientific and historical interest, yet scarcely documented or completely unknown, were identified. Research allowed to obtain a precise evaluation of many collections, although the content of some of them and the modality of their acquisition are still to be attained. The extremely large number of specimens of exotic flora obtained through exchanges, with particular regard to Egypt, was documented; exsiccata which belonged to botanists whose personal collections were considered lost, as well as samples referable to F. Vitman, G. Lavy and G. Tagliabue, were recognized. Furthermore, the archival and iconographic material associated with the specimens inserted in TO-HG represents a legacy which adds a substantial historical value to the scientific importance of the exsiccata.
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