Robert John Thornton (1768–1837) was an English physician and botanical writer, noted for ''"A New Illustration of the Sexual System of Carolus Von Linnæus"'' (1797-1807) and ''"The British Flora"'' of 1812.

Life

He was the son of

Bonnell Thornton Bonnell Thornton (1725–1768) was an English poet, essayist, and critic. He was educated at Westminster School, and at Christ Church, Oxford, where he graduated B.A. in 1747. In 1752 Thornton founded the ''Drury Lane Journal'', a satirical periodi ...

and studied at

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by Henry VIII, King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge ...

. Inspired by John Martyn's lectures on botany and the work of

Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the ...

he switched from the Church to medicine. He worked at

Guy's Hospital Guy's Hospital is an NHS hospital in the borough of Southwark in central London. It is part of Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust and one of the institutions that comprise the King's Health Partners, an academic health science centre. ...

in London, where he later lectured in

medical botany Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek wo ...

. After spending some time abroad, he settled and practised in London. Robert inherited the family fortune after the death of both his brother and mother. Thornton died in destitution.

Works

In 1799 Thornton commenced his work on the ''New Illustration of the Sexual System of Carolus von Linnaeus'' a work of botanical science to be published in three parts. The first was a dissertation on the sex of plants according to the Swedish scientist, Carolus von Linnaeus and the second an exposition of the sexual system.The most ambitious part of the ''New Illustration of the Sexual System of Carolus Linnæus'' was Part III, the ''Temple of Flora'' (1799-1807). The first plates were engraved by Thomas Medland in May 1798, from paintings by

Philip Reinagle Philip Reinagle (1749 – 27 November 1833) was an English painter of animals, landscapes, and botanical scenes. The son of a Hungarian musician living in Edinburgh, Reinagle came to London in 1763 and after serving an apprenticeship, later bec ...

. Between 1798 and 1807, they produced a total of thirty-three coloured plates, engraved in aquatint, stipple and line engraving. When he planned the project, Thornton had decided to publish seventy folio-size plates. Lack of interest from the general public spelled disaster for the scheme, and the holding of a lottery could not save it from financial ruin, neither did a page in the work dedicated to the spouse of

George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...

Queen Charlotte Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (Sophia Charlotte; 19 May 1744 – 17 November 1818) was Queen of Great Britain and of Ireland as the wife of King George III from their marriage on 8 September 1761 until the union of the two kingdoms ...

, patroness of botany and the fine arts. It is estimated that around 800 copies were produced, each containing 31 plates accompanied by inspirational poetry and explanatory notes covering flower lore and legend. Published:- Thornton, R.J. 1812. ''Elements of Botany Part 1. Classification.'' London. Dedicated to Rev. Thomas Martyn, M.A.F.R.S.

Gallery

File:'Temple of Flora' by Robert John Thornton, 1812, Loy McCandless Marks Library.jpg, ''

Alpinia zerumbet ''Alpinia zerumbet'', commonly known as shell ginger, is a perennial species of ginger native to East Asia. They can grow up to tall and bear colorful funnel-shaped flowers. They are grown as ornamentals and their leaves are used in cuisine and ...

'' as syn. Renealmia nutans in'' Temple of Flora'' by Robert John Thornton, 1812 File:The Temple of Flora, Snowdrop.jpg,

Snowdrop ''Galanthus'' (from Ancient Greek , (, "milk") + (, "flower")), or snowdrop, is a small genus of approximately 20 species of bulbous perennial herbaceous plants in the family Amaryllidaceae. The plants have two linear leaves and a single sm ...

, ''The Temple of Flora'' (1797-1810)

Life

Works

Gallery

References

External links

Further reading