Daniel Hanbury

Daniel Hanbury
Portrait of Daniel Hanbury, from Hortus Mortolensis, 1912
Born	11 September 1825 Clapham, Surrey
Died	24 March 1875 (1875-03-25) (aged 49) Clapham
Resting place	Quaker burial ground, Wandsworth
Nationality	British
Fields	pharmacology, botany, pharmacognosy
Institutions	London, La Mortola
Alma mater	Pharmaceutical Society
Known for	Giardini Botanici Hanbury, La Mortola
Author abbrev. (botany)	D.Hanb

Daniel Hanbury FRS (11 September 1825 – 24 March 1875), a British botanist and pharmacologist, was one of the leading 19th century experts on pharmacognosy, the study of the medicinal applications of nature, principally of plants.

Son of a Quaker pharmacist, Daniel Bell Hanbury (1794-1882), and his wife Rachel Christy (1802-1876), Daniel Hanbury grew up in London. Entering his father's firm, Allen, Hanbury and Barry, at the age of 16, young Daniel quickly proved a valuable and capable employee. His life was dedicated to his work, into which he threw himself with great energy. Hanbury, who never married, was a vegetarian, and like many of his Victorian contemporaries, opposed the use of alcohol and tobacco.

He retired from business in 1870 and died in Clapham of typhoid fever. He was buried in the burial ground of the Society of Friends at Wandsworth.

Hanbury's extensive knowledge of the world's botany was based on years of study, collecting and travel - trips to the Middle East and throughout Europe were supplemented by extensive correspondence with colleagues throughout the world. He was an essential partner to his brother, Sir Thomas Hanbury, in selecting specimens for and establishing the Giardini Botanici Hanbury at La Mortola, now maintained by the University of Genoa. On his death, Sir Thomas donated his brother's entire botanical cabinet collection to Kew Gardens, where it is now part of the Economic Botany Collection.