Atanasio Echeverría y Godoy was an 18th-century
Mexican
Mexican may refer to:
Mexico and its culture
*Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America
** People
*** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants
*** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...
botanical artist and
naturalist who trained at the Royal Art Academy in Mexico. The
genus ''
Echeveria'' was named in his honour by
Augustin Pyramus de Candolle.
Royal Botanical Expedition
In
Mexico City in 1787, Echeverría joined
Martin de Sessé y Lacasta and
Mariano Mociño Suárez de Figueroa
Mariano is a masculine name from the Romance languages, corresponding to the feminine Mariana.
It is an Italian, Spanish and Portuguese variant of the Roman Marianus which derived from Marius, and Marius derived from the Roman god Mars (see also ...
on their
Royal Botanical Expedition to New Spain, which had the goal of compiling a great inventory of
fauna and
flora of
New Spain
New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( es, Virreinato de Nueva España, ), or Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain during the Spanish colonization of the Am ...
.
In 1791, he continued onto the California portion of the expedition, where he made images of 200 plant species. In 1794, he traveled to the
Caribbean
The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...
with Sessé and botanist Jaime Senseve. The group landed in
Havana, Cuba
Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center. , and later traveled to
Puerto Rico.
Because of political instability in
New Spain
New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( es, Virreinato de Nueva España, ), or Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain during the Spanish colonization of the Am ...
caused by the
Napoleonic Wars, the project was not completed, and Echeverría left the expedition in 1797.
Guantanamo Commission and later life
Echeverría then joined the Guantanamo Commission under Conte de Mopox y Jaruco, which traveled across Cuba. On this expedition, 3,700 specimens were collected and 27 new species described. Afterwards, Echeverría briefly traveled to
Madrid before returning to Mexico and becoming an art director at the
Academy of San Carlos
The Academy of San Carlos ( es, Academia de San Carlos) is located at 22 Academia Street in just northeast of the main plaza of Mexico City. It was the first major art academy and the first art museum in the Americas. It was founded in 1781 as th ...
.
See also
*''
Echeveria atropurpurea''
References
External links
Illustration of butterflies by Atanasio EcheverríaHunt Institute''Flora Mexicana'' via Biodiversity Library
Mexican artists
Mexican naturalists
Year of birth missing
Year of death missing
Mexican people of Basque descent
18th-century Mexican people
18th-century Mexican scientists
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