Mededeelingen uit den Leidschen Hortus. II. De beteekenis van Charles de l’ Escluse voor den Hortus te Leiden

It is generally known that Prince William of Orange granted to the City of Leyden in the year 1575 the concession of establishing a university as a reward for the heroic defense of the city during its siege. Very soon thereafter it was considered desirable to have a botanical garden connected with the university. In those days botany had not yet grown to an independent science and was carried on mainly as a part of medical science. The first medicinal garden, in behalf of academic education, was laid out at Padua in 1545, which example was followed at Pisa two years later. The botanical garden at Bologna was etablished in 1567 or 68, while the one at Leipzig came about in 1580. The botanical garden at Leyden ranks fifth in age, as it was laid out in 1587. On April 13, 1587, the Municipal Court granted the use of the grounds in the rear of the University building for the laying out of a garden in behalf of the School of Medicine. The actual planting of the garden, however, did not occur until 1594, after Clusius had taken up his position as a professor to the University of Leyden. Charles de l’Escluse (Clusius) was born at Atrecht (Arras) in 1526. He travelled extensively; we find him in Ghent, at te Universities of Louvain, Marburg, Wittemburg and later Montpellier. He also made botanical study tours in Languedoc and the Provence, returning from there to his native South Netherlands. His adventurous spirit then took him across the Channel to England, but a little later we find him studying in Paris. In 1573 he was connected with the Court of Maximillian II for the laying out of a medicinal herbgarden at Vienna, over which he was to have complete supervision. It was in 1592, when residing in Frankfurt, that Clusius received his appointment to the University of Leyden. His position at Leyden, however, was primarily of an honorary nature; Clusius was at his arrival in Leyden 67 years of age and an invalid. For these reasons the Trustees soon appointed some one who could supervise daily the laying out of the „Hortus medicus”. The pharmacist Dirc Outgaerts Cluyt was chosen for this position. He carried out his task with much zeal and diligence. Already in the late summer of 1594 he had laid out and planted the garden under Clusius’ guidance. How this was done can be seen from a plan and a complete inventory of the garden at the end of September of that year, which appear in the university’s records of those days. Far over one thousand different kinds and varieties had been planted, partly in tubs and pots. The garden was about 41 meters long and 31 meters wide. This inventory of 1594 is the oldest known complete plantinglist of a botanical garden. As inventory it has however been preceded by those of the botanical garden at Pisa in 1548 and 1569, and by the printed one of the garden at Padua in 1591. It has been possible to find about 90% of the names mentioned in the inventory in the book written by Casparus Bauhinus entitled „Pinax theatri botanici” of 1623. These names were transferred into Linnean synonyms with the aid of Hermannus Eberhardus Richter’s „Caroli Linnaei Systema, Genera, Species Plantarum” of 1840. The Linnean names in turn had to be transferred into names used at the present time. The following example will suffice to illustrate just what was done: Several of the names which could not be found in this way were determined with the aid of other words. In studying the catalogue it appears that Clusius gave a much wider scope to the garden, than was originally intended. He brought together a collection more along botanical than strictly medical lines. This idea harmonizes with that of Clusius as a scientific worker. In 1599 the Trustees decided to construct a building for the storage of foreign plants during the winter. In the library of the University one finds a written catalogue of the botanical garden in 1596 as well as an inventory in handwriting of all bulbs and plants stored in this building during the wintermonths. The first printed catalogue of the Leyden gardens appeared in 16o1. Of all the plants which were in the botanical garden during the time of Clusius probably still one is existing, viz. Laburnum anagyroides Med. At present it is a tree of 16 ft. 4”. in circumference at the base and a height of nearly 57 feet. In 1608 a great novelty, a horse-chestnuttree, Aesculus Hippocastanum L., was acquired. Of the genus Chelidonium they possessed the ordinary species majus L. as well as the var. laciniatum Koch. This latter plant is the oldest known example of a mutation orginating under cultivation. It is assumed that this deviation came about suddenly from the older form in about 1590. The pharmacist Sprenger at Heidelberg was the first man to find this sport in his garden. He sent some samples to Clusius, who must have put them in the Leyden botanical garden, because in the catalogue of 1594 appears the name Chelidonium Sprengerianum. There also were a great many plants from America, e.g. the potato, in the distribution of wich Clusius contributed greatly. This plant, known to the Indians as „Papa” is mentioned as „Papas Americanorum” in the catalogue of 1594. Bulbous plants are numerous, they were of special interest to Clusius. On April 4th. 1609 Clusius passed away, which must have been a great loss to the University of Leyden. Adjoining the Hortus is a plot on which this garden of 1594 has been reproduced in such a way that even the order in which the plants were placed is exactly according to the plan drawn up by Clusius. Moreover, there was an opportunity to place in a separate part of this garden the plants which were growing in the Hortus during the rest of Clusius’ lifetime. A statue of Clusius placed in this garden perpetuates the memory of this famous scientist through whose untiring efforts the botanical garden of Leyden became an outstanding example of planning as well as of interesting collections. The „Clusius-garden” was officially opened on September 18, 1933. This reproduction is not merely an historical curiosity. It has a special scientific value, for the botanist as well as the pharmacist who desires to study the historical development of his special science will find it an interesting source of knowledge.