Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

Agnes Arber, 1879-1960

1960; Royal Society; Volume: 6; Linguagem: Inglês

10.1098/rsbm.1960.0021

1748-8494

H. Hamshaw Thomas,

Scottish History and National Identity

Agnes Arber was born in 1879, the eldest child of a cultured family, whose members achieved distinction in different fields. Her father, Henry Robert Robertson, was an artist of Scottish extraction, whose father, a man of considerable botanical interests, also with gifts as an artist, had a private school at Slough. Her mother, Agnes Lucy Turner, was a descendant of Robert Chamberlain, who founded the china works of Chamberlain & Son at Worcester, and her mother’s relatives included John Davidson, the African explorer, and George Fownes, both of whom were Fellows of the Royal Society. Her brother, Donald Straun Robertson, M.A., F.B.A., was Regius Professor of Greek in the University of Cambridge and author of various books on classical subjects. Her sister, Janet Robertson, was a portrait painter. At an early age her mother inspired her with an interest in plants and her father gave her regular drawing lessons from the age of three until she went to school. This early training developed her powers of observation, and laid the foundation of the skill and artistry which later formed such a notable feature of her books and papers.