Olga Fédchenko
| Olga Fedchenko | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born |
Ol'ga Aleksandrovna Armfeld 30 October 1845 Moscow, Russia |
| Died | 24 April 1921 (aged 75) Saint Petersburg, Russia |
| Nationality | Russian |
| Other names | Olga Fedtschenko |
| Education | University of Moscow |
| Known for | Botany |
| Parent(s) | Alexandre Armfeldt |
Olga Aleksandrovna Fedchenko or Olga Fedtschenko (née Armfeld; 30 October 1845 – 24 April 1921) was a Russian botanist. Rosa fedtschenkoana, which is found in Asia, was named in her honour (with a German transliteration of her name).
Ol'ga (Olga) Armfeld was born in Moscow in 1845. Her father was Alexandre Armfeldt who was a Professor at the University of Moscow. She was educated at home until she was eleven when she went to school where she showed an interest in Botany. She began collecting plants and from about 1861 she was using her art and language skills to translate academic descriptions from English, French and German naturalists. She was preparing illustrations, communicating with foreign naturalists and visiting the University's Zoological Museum. She worked for several years before she met the geologist, Alexei Fedchenko.
She married the recently qualified Moscow University geology graduate Fedchenko on 2 July 1867. She and her husband worked together and when in 1868 he was recommended to undertake a hazardous mission to the recently conquered region of Russian Turkestan. Olga became a full, but unpaid, member of the team.
The mission was hazardous because Turkestan was still transitioning to becoming part of the Russian Empire. Her husband's name had been recommended to the first Governor-General of Turkestan, Konstantin von Kaufman. Kaufman was a military governor and he was still extending the borders of the Russian Empire. Kaufman wanted an investigation of what he saw as a "newly and scarcely explored region". Kaufman's team included the Fedchenkos, the war artist Vasily Vereshchagin and later the educationalist and linguist Nikolai Ostroumov. Kaufman set up a Tashkent outpost of the Moscow Society of Natural Scientists (OLEAE). The Fedchenkos did not set out immediately for Turkestan but they went on preparatory visits to Italy, France and Sweden to study their collections. Olga also went on solo trips to Russian Museums. During all this travelling she used the opportunity to make notes and gather exhibits.
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