Heinrich R.E. Handel-Mazzetti

Heinrich Raphael Eduard Freiherr von Handel-Mazzetti
Born(1882-02-19)19 February 1882
Vienna
Died1 February 1940(1940-02-01) (aged 57)
NationalityAustrian
Alma materUniversity of Vienna
Known forStudies on Chinese plants
Scientific career
FieldsBotany
Author abbrev. (botany)Hand.-Mazz.

Heinrich Raphael Eduard Freiherr von Handel-Mazzetti (19 February 1882 in Vienna – 1 February 1940) was an Austrian botanist best known for his monograph of dandelions, many publications on the flora of China, and botanical explorations of that country. He was the cousin of novelist Enrica von Handel-Mazzetti (1871-1955).[1]

Life

He studied botany at the University of Vienna, obtaining his doctorate in 1907. From 1905 he served as an assistant at the botanical institute in Vienna. In 1925 he was appointed curator to the Natural History Museum.

In 1907 he published a world monograph of the genus Taraxacum (dandelions).[2] Even if taxonomy of this genus has changed significantly. Handel-Mazzetti's book remains useful, especially because it is the only work of such scope until now.[3]

His earlier research involved scientific excursions to Switzerland (1906), Bosnia and Herzegovina (1909), followed by an expedition to Mesopotamia and Kurdistan (1910). On behalf of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, he traveled to China in 1914, performing botanical research in the provinces of Yunnan (1914, 1915, 1916), Sichuan (1914), Guizhou (1917), and Hunan (1917, 1918). In China he also undertook cartographic surveys. He returned to Vienna in 1919, and devoted his time and energy to the study of Chinese flora.[4]

He was the author of Naturbilder aus Südwest-China : Erlebnisse und Eindrücke eines österreichischen Forschers während des Weltkrieges (1927), later translated into English as "A botanical pioneer in South West China : experiences and impressions of an Austrian botanist during the First World War".[5]

There are streets named after Handel-Mazzetti in the Austrian towns of Kremsmünster, St. Pölten, Schwanenstadt, Steyr, Wels and Wieselburg as well as the cities of Linz and Vienna.

The standard author abbreviation Hand.-Mazz. is used to indicate this person as the author when citing a botanical name.[6]

References

  1. ^ Heinrich Handel-Mazzetti: [A Botanical Pioneer In South West China], Paeo.de, retrieved 16 August 2014
  2. ^ Handel-Mazzetti, Heinrich (1907). "Monographie der Gattung Taraxacum". Biodiversity Heritage Library. Retrieved 2023-10-31.
  3. ^ Kirschner, Jan; Štěpánek, Jan (1998). A monograph of Taraxacum sect. Palustria. Průhonice: Institute of Botany, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic. ISBN 978-80-86188-00-3.
  4. ^ Deutsche Biographie
  5. ^ WorldCat Identities (publications)
  6. ^ International Plant Names Index.  Hand.-Mazz.

External links

  • Entry in the Österreichisches Biographisches Lexikon 1815–1950