Rudolf Marloth
| Rudolf Marloth | |
|---|---|
Rudolf Marloth
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| Born |
28 December 1855 Lübben, Germany |
| Died | 15 May 1931 (aged 75) Caledon, Cape Province |
| Fields | Botanist, Pharmacist and Analytical Chemist |
| Alma mater | University of Berlin |
| Thesis | "The protective mechanisms employed by seeds against harmful agents" |
| Author abbrev. (botany) | Marloth |
Hermann Wilhelm Rudolf Marloth 28 December 1855 Lübben, Germany – 15 May 1931 Caledon, Cape Province was a German-born South African botanist, pharmacist and analytical chemist, best known for his Flora of South Africa which appeared in six superbly illustrated volumes between 1913 and 1932. This botanist is denoted by the author abbreviation Marloth when citing a botanical name.
Marloth studied pharmacy in Lübben from 1873-1876. after which he worked at various pharmacies in Germany and Switzerland, then formally qualified as a pharmacist at the University of Berlin. In 1883 he was awarded a doctorate for his thesis "The protective mechanisms employed by seeds against harmful agents".
He arrived in Cape Town on 30 December 1883 after being urged to do so by a schoolfriend who had already settled there. During his first year there he worked as a pharmacist for the firm of Wentzel and Schleswig. He was enthralled by Cape Town and Table Mountain and started immediately on a plant collection, soon going further afield to places like Klein Winterhoek, Du Toitskloof, Bainskloof and Sneeukop. During this time he started his own business in Cape Town. Acting as a locum in Kimberley, he made collecting trips from 1885-1886 to the surrounding areas such as Kuruman in the Northern Cape and to South West Africa where he visited Aus, Lüderitz Bay, Walvis Bay, Usakos, Ubib, Karibib, Otjimbingwe and Okahandja. Many of his specimens were written up under "Plantae Marlothiana" by Engler and others in Berlin.
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