Francisco Pascasio Moreno (May 31, 1852 – November 22, 1919) was a prominent explorer and academic in

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest ...

, where he is usually referred to as ''Perito'' Moreno (''perito'' means "specialist, expert"). Perito Moreno has been credited as one of the most influential figures in the Argentine incorporation of large parts of

Patagonia Patagonia () refers to a geographical region that encompasses the southern end of South America, governed by Argentina and Chile. The region comprises the southern section of the Andes Mountains with lakes, fjords, temperate rainforests, and g ...

and its subsequent development.

Life and work

Moreno was born to Francisco and Juana Thwaites Madero in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

. Raised in a traditional patrician family, he studied in local

parochial school A parochial school is a private primary or secondary school affiliated with a religious organization, and whose curriculum includes general religious education in addition to secular subjects, such as science, mathematics and language arts. The wo ...

s. He shared his spare time with his father searching for artifacts and fossils and, at age 14, created a homemade museum of his extensive collections. Following graduation in 1872, he participated in the founding of the Argentine Scientific Society. He embarked on the first of the series of scientific expeditions that made him well known: a survey of Río Negro Territory, largely uncharted country. In January 1876, he reached Lake Nahuel-Huapi in the southern

Andes The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long, wide (widest between 18°S – 20°S ...

, and on February 15, 1877, he discovered and named Lake Argentino. He also explored numerous rivers in

. On March 2, he discovered and named

Mount Fitz Roy Monte Fitz Roy (also known as Cerro Chaltén, Cerro Fitz Roy, or simply Mount Fitz Roy) is a mountain in Patagonia, on the border between Argentina and Chile.Aymara people of the Andes and

Altiplano The Altiplano (Spanish for "high plain"), Collao (Quechua and Aymara: Qullaw, meaning "place of the Qulla") or Andean Plateau, in west-central South America, is the most extensive high plateau on Earth outside Tibet. The plateau is located at ...

. After his return to Argentina, that year he embarked on his second major expedition to the territory of

. He was taken prisoner by a Tehuelche aboriginal tribe and condemned to death. He escaped on March 11, one day before the appointed execution. During this period he met the Tehuelche chief, Inacayal, who was hospitable to him. Later Inacayal led a resistance to the government, not surrendering until 1884. In 1882–1883 Moreno explored the Andes from

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

southward, and in 1884–1885 he made new explorations of the territory south of the Río Negro and of Patagonia. He was appointed as chief of the Argentine exploring commission of the southern territories, and member of numerous European scientific societies. For his contributions to science, Moreno received a doctorate ''

Honoris causa An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hono ...

'' from the National University of Córdoba in 1877. He is also known for his role in defending Argentine interests. He made defining surveys that led to the Boundary treaty of 1881 between Chile and Argentina. In honor to this contribution, the Argentinian glacier Perito Moreno, was named after him. These surveys and others yielded Moreno a vast collection of archaeological and anthropological data and artifacts, for which he founded an anthropological museum in Buenos Aires in 1877.

Museum director and ''perito''

In 1888, he founded the La Plata Museum of Natural History, the most important of its kind in South America. The scholar Jens Andermann has studied how Moreno's collection of artifacts at these two museums helped establish Argentine history, and the government's claim to its territory. Through these scientific and cultural collections, Moreno contributed to the

national myth A national myth is an inspiring narrative or anecdote about a nation's past. Such myths often serve as important national symbols and affirm a set of national values. A national myth may sometimes take the form of a national epic or be incorpor ...

ology. He brought artifacts and materials in from remote regions to be examined, catalogued and studies at the museum in the capital. Andermann has written that such museums of natural history and anthropology "enabled and justified state control of both the natural resources and indigenous populations of Argentina."Adrienne Fast, Review: The Optic of the State: Visuality and Power in Argentina and Brazil by Jens Andermann"
, ''WRECK'', Volume 2, number 1 (2008), accessed 14 October 2013 They also helped develop the national narratives being shaped. Moreno served as the first Director of Museo de la Plata, guiding it until 1906. As director of La Plata Museum of Natural History, Moreno sacked Florentino Ameghino in 1888, even denying him entry to the museum. In 1902 Moreno was appointed ''Perito'' (a technical specialist or expert), in which capacity he disproved Chilean claims to the

continental divide A continental divide is a drainage divide on a continent such that the drainage basin on one side of the divide feeds into one ocean or sea, and the basin on the other side either feeds into a different ocean or sea, or else is endorheic, not c ...

in the Southern Cone. Moreno proved that many

n lakes draining to the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the conti ...

were part of the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

basin. During the

quaternary The Quaternary ( ) is the current and most recent of the three periods of the Cenozoic Era in the geologic time scale of the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS). It follows the Neogene Period and spans from 2.58 million year ...

glaciation A glacial period (alternatively glacial or glaciation) is an interval of time (thousands of years) within an ice age that is marked by colder temperatures and glacier advances. Interglacials, on the other hand, are periods of warmer climate bet ...

s, they had become dammed by moraines, which changed their outlets to drain to the west and Chilean territory. In 1903, Moreno donated some of the land previously given to him in order to establish the Nahuel Huapi National Park. He was appointed assistant director of the National Education Council in 1911 and helped secure funding for the Bernasconi Institute, a landmark primary school built in Buenos Aires. It was constructed on land Moreno sold to Swiss Argentine industrialist Félix Bernasconi. Its archaeological and natural history museums were created in part with his extensive collections of artifacts. He established the

Scouting and Guiding in Argentina The Scouting and Guiding movement in Argentina consists of at least ten independent organizations as well as some international units. Scouting was officially founded in Argentina in 1912, shortly after the publication of "Scouting For Boys" in Sp ...

, the Argentine Boy Scouts Association in 1912, and joined former U.S. President

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

in a tour of Patagonia. He continued to oversee the

La Plata Museum The La Plata Museum ( es, Museo de la Plata) is a natural history museum in La Plata, Argentina. It is part of the (Natural Sciences School) of the UNLP ( National University of La Plata). The building, long, today houses 3 million fossils an ...

well after his official retirement. In later years Moreno responded to political developments in South America at the time of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

by joining the reactionary

Argentine Patriotic League The Argentine Patriotic League ( es, Liga Patriótica Argentina) was a ''Nacionalista'' paramilitary group, officially created in Buenos Aires on January 16, 1919, during the Tragic week events. Presided over by Manuel Carlés, a professor at ...

shortly before his death in 1919. Moreno was first interred in a

La Recoleta Cemetery La Recoleta Cemetery ( es, Cementerio de la Recoleta) is a cemetery located in the Recoleta neighbourhood of Buenos Aires, Argentina. It contains the graves of notable people, including Eva Perón, presidents of Argentina, Nobel Prize winners, ...

crypt. In 1944 his remains were transferred and reinterred at Centinela Isle in Lake Nahuel Huapi. A species of Argentinian lizard, '' Liolaemus morenoi'', is named in his honor.Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . ("Moreno, F. J. P.", p. 183).

Gallery

References

External links

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Biography
(in Spanish)

(in Spanish)

Zoologica

Göttingen State and University Library The Göttingen State and University Library (german: Niedersächsische Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Göttingen or SUB Göttingen) is the library for Göttingen University as well as for the Göttingen Academy of Sciences and is the state l ...

Digitised ''Viaje á la Patagonia austral emprendido bajo los auspicios del gobierno nacional'' 1876-1877 {{DEFAULTSORT:Moreno, Francisco 1852 births 1919 deaths 19th-century explorers People from Buenos Aires Argentine people of Spanish descent Argentine people of English descent Argentine scientists Argentine explorers Explorers of South America Explorers of Chile Recipients of the Cullum Geographical Medal History of Patagonia National University of La Plata faculty Directors of museums in Argentina