John Buchanan (botanist)

John Buchanan (13 October 1819 – 1898) was a New Zealand botanist and scientific artist. He was a fellow of the Linnean Society.[1]

John Buchanan, 1883–1890, Dunedin, by John Richard Morris. No Known Copyright Restrictions. Te Papa (O.041253)

Biography

Buchanan was born in Dunbartonshire, Scotland, and in his early life apprenticed as a calico pattern designer.[2] He emigrated to Dunedin in 1852, not long after the settlement had been established, working as a survey assistant and gold prospector, during the Otago Gold Rush.[2][3] During this period, Buchanan was an amateur botanist, collecting plant specimens he sent to contacts in Scotland.[2] On the recommendation of Joseph Dalton Hooker, Buchanan became employed as a botanist for James Hector's survey of Otago and the West Coast of the South Island.[2]

In 1865, Buchanan was employed by the Colonial Museum in Wellington (now Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa), after Hector was appointed as the director of the institution.[2] During the next 20 years, Buchanan collected specimens for the museum and surveyed the plants growing in the Wellington Botanic Garden.[2]

Works

Buchanan also had some 29 publications in the Transactions and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New Zealand, including his identification of new species.

Artworks
  • Contributed woodcuts to Buller's Manual of New Zealand Birds
  • Contributed scientific illustrations to Hutton's Fishes of New Zealand
Portrait of John Buchanan, New Zealand, by Henry Morland Gore. Gift of the New Zealand Institute, 1885. No Known Copyright Restrictions. Te Papa (1992-0035-1685)

References
  1. Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Buchanan, John". teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 26 November 2020.
  2. Buchanan, Peter K.; Cooper, Jerry A. (2020). "John Buchanan's pre-1880 records and illustrations of New Zealand funghi". Records of the Auckland Institute and Museum. 55 (55): 29–36. doi:10.32912/ram.2020.55.3. ISSN 0067-0464. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
  3. Adams, Nancy M. (1 January 2002). "John Buchanan F.L.S. botanist and artist (1819–1898)". Tuhinga: Records of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa. 13: 73.
  4. International Plant Names Index.  Buchanan.
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