Johan Patrik Ljungström (1784–1859) was a

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

jeweler A bench jeweler is an artisan who uses a combination of skills to make and repair jewelry. Some of the more common skills that a bench jeweler might employ include antique restoration, silversmith, Goldsmith, stone setting, engraving, fabrica ...

, inventor, and

underwater diving Underwater diving, as a human activity, is the practice of descending below the water's surface to interact with the environment. It is also often referred to as diving, an ambiguous term with several possible meanings, depending on contex ...

pioneer. He is credited as the first private underwater diver in Sweden, and possibly beyond. His works, sometimes abbreviated as ''J. P. Ljungström'' (J.P.L.) are represented inter alia by the

Nordic Museum The Nordic Museum ( sv, Nordiska museet) is a museum located on Djurgården, an island in central Stockholm, Sweden, dedicated to the cultural history and ethnography of Sweden from the early modern period (in Swedish history, it is said t ...

in Stockholm, and the Museum of Bohuslän.

Biography

Johan Patrik Ljungström was born in Stockholm, Sweden, Christian Fredrik Ljungström, a länsman, and Anna Elisabeth (née Tengman). He married three times: to Fredrika Charlotte (née Skarstedt), Maria Christina (née

Spaak {{Use dmy dates, date=April 2018 Spaak is a family originating from Bohuslän, Sweden, with notable branches in Belgium, France, and Italy.Paul De Zuttere, ''Famille Spaak'', dans : L'Intermédiaire des Généalogistes, n°385, Bruxelles, Januar ...

), and Britta Catharina (née Bagge). He had children in all three marriages, including

Jonas Patrik Ljungström Jonas Patrik Ljungström (12 March 1827 – 22 October 1898) was a Swedish cartographer, geodesist, and teacher at the Royal Institute of Technology. Biography Jonas Patrik Ljungström was born 12 March 1827 in Uddevalla as the son of jew ...

. Active as a jeweler and

burgher Burgher may refer to: * Burgher (social class), a medieval, early modern European title of a citizen of a town, and a social class from which city officials could be drawn ** Burgess (title), a resident of a burgh in northern Britain ** Grand Bu ...

in Stockholm,

Uddevalla Uddevalla (old no, Oddevold) is a town and the seat of Uddevalla Municipality in Västra Götaland County, Sweden. In 2015, it had a population of 34 781. It is located at a bay of the south-eastern part of Skagerrak. The beaches of Uddevalla ar ...

, and

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

, works surviving from his ateliers include ranging from ciboriums preserved by the

Church of Sweden The Church of Sweden ( sv, Svenska kyrkan) is an Evangelical Lutheran national church in Sweden. A former state church, headquartered in Uppsala, with around 5.6 million members at year end 2021, it is the largest Christian denomination in Sw ...

, to jewelry for personal adornment represented by the

, as well as regional cultural heritage museums. The jewelry business started by Ljungström was with time overtaken by his descendants, remaining one of the oldest active jewelers in the region. As an inventor, he was noted for his pioneering in

gas lighting Gas lighting is the production of artificial light from combustion of a gaseous fuel, such as hydrogen, methane, carbon monoxide, propane, butane, acetylene, ethylene, coal gas (town gas) or natural gas. The light is produced either directly ...

. Subsequent to initial experiments in own ateliers with

copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...

apparatuses and chandeliers of

ink Ink is a gel, sol, or solution that contains at least one colorant, such as a dye or pigment, and is used to color a surface to produce an image, text, or design. Ink is used for drawing or writing with a pen, brush, reed pen, or quill. Thicker ...

brass Brass is an alloy of copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn), in proportions which can be varied to achieve different mechanical, electrical, and chemical properties. It is a substitutional alloy: atoms of the two constituents may replace each other wit ...

and

crystal A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituents (such as atoms, molecules, or ions) are arranged in a highly ordered microscopic structure, forming a crystal lattice that extends in all directions. In addition, macro ...

, the technology was exhibitioned in the city of

, reportedly one of the first such public installations of gas lightning in the region, enhanced as a

triumphal arch A triumphal arch is a free-standing monumental structure in the shape of an archway with one or more arched passageways, often designed to span a road. In its simplest form a triumphal arch consists of two massive piers connected by an arch, cro ...

for the city gate for a

royal visit A state visit is a formal visit by a head of state to a foreign country, at the invitation of the head of state of that foreign country, with the latter also acting as the official host for the duration of the state visit. Speaking for the host ...

of Charles XIV John of Sweden in 1820. Among his side ventures was also early

diving bell A diving bell is a rigid chamber used to transport divers from the surface to depth and back in open water, usually for the purpose of performing underwater work. The most common types are the open-bottomed wet bell and the closed bell, which c ...

development, used to recover material from shipwrecks, upon challenge by a Swedish expert Rosenberg that it would be impossible to develop technology to access a designated shipwreck. Hence he invented a diving bell built of

tinned Tinning is the process of thinly coating sheets of wrought iron or steel with tin, and the resulting product is known as tinplate. The term is also widely used for the different process of coating a metal with solder before soldering. It is mos ...

with space for a crew of 2-3 persons. In 1825, the bell, equipped with

compass A compass is a device that shows the cardinal directions used for navigation and geographic orientation. It commonly consists of a magnetized needle or other element, such as a compass card or compass rose, which can pivot to align itself wit ...

and methods of communication to the surface, successfully dived down to 25 ells with Ljungström and an assistant on board, "to the awe of the local society, much of which was assembled for the demonstration." Ljungström went on to author a book presenting technology and ideas for a

private sector The private sector is the part of the economy, sometimes referred to as the citizen sector, which is owned by private groups, usually as a means of establishment for profit or non profit, rather than being owned by the government. Employment The ...

in Sweden, which was until then still strictly subject of authorities in the form of public diving companies. Towards the 1830s he relocated to

, attached to the

Evangelical Lutheran Church of Saint Katarina The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Saint Catherine ( sv, Sankta Katarina kyrka, fi, Pyhän Katariinan kirkko, russian: Евангелическо-лютеранская церковь Святой Екатерины) is an Evangelical Luthera ...

, where also

Immanuel Nobel Immanuel Nobel the Younger ( , ; 24 March 1801 – 3 September 1872) was a Swedish engineer, architect, inventor and industrialist. He was the inventor of the rotary lathe used in plywood manufacturing. He was a member of the Nobel family and ...

(1801–1872) was active and with whom he may have collaborated in underwater inventions. Upon return to Sweden towards the end of his life, he settled as a jeweler elder in Stockholm.

Bibliography

* ''Strödda anteckningar, rörande dykeri- och lots-inrättningarna'' (And. Johnson, Uddevalla, 1827)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ljungstrom, Johan Patrik 1784 births 1859 deaths Johan Patrik Artists from Stockholm Businesspeople from Stockholm Writers from Stockholm Swedish jewellers 19th-century Swedish inventors Underwater divers Diving equipment inventors Pioneering scientific divers Gas technologies

Biography

Bibliography

Further reading

References