From Linnaeus to DNA13 March 2007 - 13 January 2008
This year marks the 300th anniversary of Carl Linnaeus's birth, and it is being celebrated by the Swedish Museum of Natural History. Our exhibition on Linnaeus takes you on a voyage of discovery through his life and work, to present day research in which the spirit of Linnaeus lives on. Included on the journey are unusual plants and animals, perilous adventures, endless curiosity and a great love of all the plants on earth. Don't miss this encounter with a man who is as relevant today as he was 300 years ago! Unique objectsAmong the museum's collections are such treasures as the Linnaeus Herbarium and specimens of the animals he studied. A selection of these and other objects play a central role in the exhibition. Museum research — the Linnaean heritageOne section of the exhibition deals with the present, but with linkages back to Linnaeus. Still today, scientists around the world gather, describe and classify species. The exhibition introduces visitors to current research within the field of systematic biology, including the latest DNA technology, what scientists learn from it, and the uses to which that knowledge is put. An exhibition within the exhibitionThe National Linnaeus Secretariat has published a special volume, System och passion, which deals with Linnaeus's sexual system of species classification. A selection of photographs from the book by Helene Schmitz is on display as an adjunct to the exhibition of the Museum of Natural History. The plants in the photographs have been selected in co-operation with Pia Östensson of the museum's research department. National celebrationLinnaeus is one of Sweden's best-known men of science, and the anniversary of his birth is being celebrated with a national jubilee that will continue during all of 2007, with related events throughout the country. During the jubilee year, the Museum of Natural History will co-operate with other museums in Stockholm that are arranging their own exhibitions and activities to celebrate the 300th anniversary of Linnaeus's birth. They are: the Swedish Postal Museum, Museum of Ethnography, National Museum of Art, and Observatory Museum. Contact person For additional information about the Linnaeus exhibition at the Swedish Museum of Natural History, contact the project leader, Carina Bergqvist at: tel. +46/8-519 55110; e-mail carina.bergqvist@nrm.se
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© Staffan Waerndt, Swedish Museum of Natural History
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