Henri Guillaume Galeotti (10 September 1814 – 1858) was a French-Belgian botanist and

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid, liquid, and gaseous matter that constitutes Earth and other terrestrial planets, as well as the processes that shape them. Geologists usually study geology, earth science, or geophysics, althoug ...

of Italian parentage born in Paris. He specialized in the study of the family

Cactaceae A cactus (, or less commonly, cactus) is a member of the plant family Cactaceae, a family comprising about 127 genera with some 1750 known species of the order Caryophyllales. The word ''cactus'' derives, through Latin, from the Ancient Gree ...

. He studied

geology Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ea ...

and natural history at the ''Etablissement Géographique de Bruxelles'', where he graduated in 1835 with an award-winning dissertation on the geology of

Brabant Brabant is a traditional geographical region (or regions) in the Low Countries of Europe. It may refer to: Place names in Europe * London-Brabant Massif, a geological structure stretching from England to northern Germany Belgium * Province of Bra ...

. After graduation, he spent the next five years in

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

performing geological and botanical research. Here he collected numerous new species of plants, particularly cacti. In 1840 Galeotti was offered a position teaching botany at the University of Brussels, but turned down the offer, preferring to work at his nursery outside of

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

, from where he imported Mexican flora for sell in Europe. During this time period, he collaborated with botanist

Martin Martens Martin Martens (8 December 1797 – 8 February 1863) was a Belgian botanist and chemist born in Maastricht, Netherlands. He studied medicine in Liège, afterwards serving as a physician in Maastricht from 1823 to 1835. From 1835 to 1863 he was a ...

(1797-1863) on scientific study of species native to Mexico. In 1853 he became director of the ''Jardin botanique de Bruxelles'' (

Botanical Garden of Brussels The Botanical Garden of Brussels (french: Jardin botanique de Bruxelles, nl, Kruidtuin van Brussel) is a former botanical garden in Brussels, Belgium. It was created in 1826 and stood on the Rue Royale/Koningsstraat in Saint-Josse-ten-Noode, ...

), a position he maintained until his death in 1858 from

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, i ...

. In 1852 he became editor of the ''Journal d'Horticulture Pratique'', and in 1857 created the ''Bulletin de la Société Royale d’Horticulture de Belgique et du Jardin botanique de Bruxelles''. After Galeotti's death in 1858, his personal Mexican herbarium was purchased from his widow by the ''Jardin botanique de Bruxelles''. In August 1838, while in Mexico, he and a group of other botanists explored the slopes of

Pico de Orizaba Pico de Orizaba, also known as Citlaltépetl (from Nahuatl = star, and = mountain), is an inactive stratovolcano, the highest mountain in Mexico and the third highest in North America, after Denali of Alaska in the United States and Mount ...

, the tallest mountain in Mexico. The genus ''

Galeottia ''Galeottia'' is a genus of flowering plants from the orchid family, Orchidaceae. It is native to South America, Central America and southern Mexico. #'' Galeottia acuminata'' (C.Schweinf.) Dressler & Christenson #'' Galeottia antioquiana'' (Kr ...

'' of the family

Orchidaceae Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowering ...

is named in his honor.

Selected works

* ''Mémoire sur la constitution géognostique de la province de Brabant'', 1837 - On the geognostic constitution of the province of

. * ''Mémoire sur les fougères du Mexique, et considerations sur la géographie botanique de cette contrée''; with Martin Martens (1842) - On

fern A fern (Polypodiopsida or Polypodiophyta ) is a member of a group of vascular plants (plants with xylem and phloem) that reproduce via spores and have neither seeds nor flowers. The polypodiophytes include all living pteridophytes exce ...

s native to Mexico, with considerations to their

phytogeography Phytogeography (from Greek φυτόν, ''phytón'' = "plant" and γεωγραφία, ''geographía'' = "geography" meaning also distribution) or botanical geography is the branch of biogeography that is concerned with the geographic distribution ...

. * "Enumeratio synoptica plantarum phanerogamicarum ab Henrico Galeotti in regionibus Mexicanis collectarum : ruxelles 1842-1845 Oct. (Enum. pl. Galeotti)"; with Martin Martens.WorldCat Identities
(publications)

References

National Botanic Garden of Belgium
(biography) {{DEFAULTSORT:Galeotti, Henri Guillaume 19th-century Belgian botanists 1814 births 1858 deaths