Carl Otto Lagercrantz (26 February 1868 – 13 January 1938) was a Swedish classical philologist and rector of

Uppsala University Uppsala University ( sv, Uppsala universitet) is a public university, public research university in Uppsala, Sweden. Founded in 1477, it is the List of universities in Sweden, oldest university in Sweden and the Nordic countries still in opera ...

Biography

Otto Lagercrantz was born at Näsby in

Jönköping County Jönköping County ( sv, Jönköpings län) is a county or '' län'' in southern Sweden. It borders the counties of Halland, Västra Götaland, Östergötland, Kalmar and Kronoberg. The total county population was 356,291 inhabitants in Sept ...

, Sweden. Lagercrantz graduated from high school in Uppsala in 1887. He then studied at

, earning his bachelor's degree in 1890 and his licentiate degree in 1895. He completed his

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is a ...

in 1898 with a dissertation titled ''Zur griechischen Lautgeschichte''. He then served as professor of Greek, first at the

Gothenburg University College The University of Gothenburg ( sv, Göteborgs universitet) is a List of universities in Sweden, university in Sweden's second largest city, Gothenburg. Founded in 1891, the university is the third-oldest of the current List of universities in Sw ...

and then at Uppsala University. He was appointed prorector of Uppsala University in 1929 and served as its rector 1932–1933. Lagercrantz had wide scholarly interests. In the field of papyrology, he became an international expert on alchemical manuscripts: he published the

Papyrus Graecus Holmiensis The Papyrus Graecus Holmiensis (also known as the Stockholm papyrus) is a collection of craft recipes compiled in Egypt . It is written in Greek. The Stockholm papyrus has 154 recipes for dyeing, coloring gemstones, cleaning (purifying) pearls, and ...

in 1913 and was co-publisher of the definitive work in the area, ''Catalogue des manuscrits alchimiques grecs''. His other works concerned Greek drama, etymology, lexicography and the philology of the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...

. Lagercrantz undertook study trips to Germany, England, the Netherlands, Italy and Greece. He was elected member of several learned societies: the

Royal Society of the Humanities at Uppsala The Royal Society of the Humanities at Uppsala ( sv, Kungl. Humanistiska Vetenskaps-Samfundet i Uppsala) is a Swedish Royal academy for the study of the humanities. Founding The society was founded in 1889 by a donation from tannery factory owner ...

, the

Royal Society of Arts and Sciences in Gothenburg The Royal Society of Arts and Sciences in Gothenburg ( sv, Kungliga Vetenskaps- och Vitterhets-Samhället i Göteborg, abbreviated KVVS and often known simply as ''Samhället'') is a Swedish Royal Academy. Its predecessor was founded in Gothenburg ...

, the Royal Society of Letters at Lund and the

Royal Swedish Academy of Letters, History and Antiquities The Royal Swedish Academy of Letters, History and Antiquities also called simply the Royal Academy of Letters or Vitterhetsakademin abbreviated KVHAA ( sv, Kungl. Vitterhetsakademien Historie och Antikvitets Akademien or or ) is the Swedish royal ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lagercrantz, Otto 1868 births 1938 deaths People from Jönköping County Uppsala University alumni Papyrologists Swedish classical scholars Rectors of Uppsala University Academic staff of the University of Gothenburg Members of the Royal Society of Sciences and Letters in Gothenburg Members of the Royal Swedish Academy of Letters, History and Antiquities Burials at Uppsala old cemetery