Friedrich Wilhelm Eduard Gerhard
Encyclopedia
Friedrich Wilhelm Eduard Gerhard (November 29, 1795 – May 12, 1867) was a German
archaeologist. He was co-founder and secretary of the first international archaeological society.
, and was educated at Breslau and Berlin
. The reputation he acquired by his Lectiones Apollonianae (1816) led soon afterwards to his being appointed professor at the gymnasium
of Posen. On resigning that office in 1819, on account of weakness of the eyes, he went in 1822 to Rome
, where he remained for fifteen years.
Gerhard was one of the principal originators of the Instituto di corrispondenza archeologica, founded at Rome in 1829, with the support of the Prussian crown prince, Frederick William
. Co-founders included Theodor Panofka
, Otto Magnus von Stackelberg
and August Kestner
. This model of international cooperation and systematic scientific publication was influenced by the example of Alexander von Humboldt
, and later became the present-day German Archaeological Institute
. Gerhard served as secretary to the new Institute during his stay in Rome.
Returning to Germany in 1837 he was appointed archaeologist at the Royal Museum of Berlin, and in 1844 was chosen a member of the Academy of Sciences
, and a professor in Berlin University.
of 1905 gives the following evaluation of his work:
et al.'s Beschreibung der Stadt Rom (Description of the city of Rome; Vol. I, 1829). Besides a large number of archaeological papers in periodicals, in the Annali of the Institute of Rome, and in the Transactions of the Berlin Academy, and several illustrated catalogues of Greek
, Roman
and other antiquities in the Berlin
, Naples and Vatican Museums, Gerhard was the author of the following works:
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
archaeologist. He was co-founder and secretary of the first international archaeological society.
Biography
Gerhard was born at PosenPoznan
Poznań is a city on the Warta river in west-central Poland, with a population of 556,022 in June 2009. It is among the oldest cities in Poland, and was one of the most important centres in the early Polish state, whose first rulers were buried at Poznań's cathedral. It is sometimes claimed to be...
, and was educated at Breslau and Berlin
Humboldt University of Berlin
The Humboldt University of Berlin is Berlin's oldest university, founded in 1810 as the University of Berlin by the liberal Prussian educational reformer and linguist Wilhelm von Humboldt, whose university model has strongly influenced other European and Western universities...
. The reputation he acquired by his Lectiones Apollonianae (1816) led soon afterwards to his being appointed professor at the gymnasium
Gymnasium (school)
A gymnasium is a type of school providing secondary education in some parts of Europe, comparable to English grammar schools or sixth form colleges and U.S. college preparatory high schools. The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, meaning a locality for both physical and intellectual...
of Posen. On resigning that office in 1819, on account of weakness of the eyes, he went in 1822 to Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, where he remained for fifteen years.
Gerhard was one of the principal originators of the Instituto di corrispondenza archeologica, founded at Rome in 1829, with the support of the Prussian crown prince, Frederick William
Frederick William IV of Prussia
|align=right|Upon his accession, he toned down the reactionary policies enacted by his father, easing press censorship and promising to enact a constitution at some point, but he refused to enact a popular legislative assembly, preferring to work with the aristocracy through "united committees" of...
. Co-founders included Theodor Panofka
Theodor Panofka
Theodor Sigismund Panofka was one of the first scholars to make a systemic study of the pottery of Ancient Greece, and one of the founders of the institution later to become the German Archaeological Institute .-Life:Panofka studied classical philology at Berlin University from 1819...
, Otto Magnus von Stackelberg
Otto Magnus von Stackelberg (archaeologist)
Count Otto Magnus Baron von Stackelberg was one of the first archaeologists, as well as a writer, painter and art historian.-Early life:...
and August Kestner
August Kestner
Georg Christian August Kestner was a German diplomat and art collector.-Life:Kestner was the son of civil servant Johann Christian Kestner and his wife Charlotte Buff. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe met and fell in love with Charlotte while she was engaged to Johann...
. This model of international cooperation and systematic scientific publication was influenced by the example of Alexander von Humboldt
Alexander von Humboldt
Friedrich Wilhelm Heinrich Alexander Freiherr von Humboldt was a German naturalist and explorer, and the younger brother of the Prussian minister, philosopher and linguist Wilhelm von Humboldt...
, and later became the present-day German Archaeological Institute
German Archaeological Institute
The German Archaeological Institute is an institution of research within the field of archaeology , and a "scientific corporation", with parentage of the federal Foreign Office of Germany-Origin:...
. Gerhard served as secretary to the new Institute during his stay in Rome.
Returning to Germany in 1837 he was appointed archaeologist at the Royal Museum of Berlin, and in 1844 was chosen a member of the Academy of Sciences
Prussian Academy of Sciences
The Prussian Academy of Sciences was an academy established in Berlin on 11 July 1700, four years after the Akademie der Künste or "Arts Academy", to which "Berlin Academy" may also refer.-Origins:...
, and a professor in Berlin University.
Evaluation
The New International EncyclopædiaNew International Encyclopedia
The New International Encyclopedia was an American encyclopedia first published in 1902 by Dodd, Mead and Company. It descended from the International Cyclopaedia and was updated in 1906, 1914 and 1926.-History:...
of 1905 gives the following evaluation of his work:
- Gerhard's great service to archæological study was in the publication of important groups of monuments, and in promoting an orderly classification. Such a worker was much needed at this time, when the excavations at Vulci and elsewhere in Etruria increased so suddenly the mass of early vases and other small objects. For artistic beauty and style Gerhard had little perception; his interest was largely antiquarian, and it is characteristic of him that he was attracted by the Etruscan art, generally of little interest to the artist.
Publications
Gerhard contributed to PlatnerErnst Zacharias Platner
Ernst Zacharias Platner was a German painter and writer born in Leipzig. He was the son of anthropologist Ernst Platner ....
et al.'s Beschreibung der Stadt Rom (Description of the city of Rome; Vol. I, 1829). Besides a large number of archaeological papers in periodicals, in the Annali of the Institute of Rome, and in the Transactions of the Berlin Academy, and several illustrated catalogues of Greek
Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece is a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine era. Included in Ancient Greece is the...
, Roman
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
and other antiquities in the Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, Naples and Vatican Museums, Gerhard was the author of the following works:
- Rapporto intorno i vasi Volcenti (1831)
- Antike Bildwerke (Stuttgart, 1827-1844)
- Auserlesene griechische Vasenbilder (1839—1858)
- Griechische und etruskische Trinkschalen (1843)
- Etruskische und campanische Vasenbilder (1843)
- Etruskische Spiegel (4 vols., 1843-68; 5th vol. by Klugmann et al., 1897)
- Apulische Vasen (1846)
- Trinkschalen und Gefässe (1850)
- Hyperboreisch-römische Studien (vol. i., 1833; vol. ii., 1852)
- Prodromus mythologische Kunsterklärung (Stuttgart and Tübingen, 1828)
- Griechische Mythologie (1854-1855)
- Gesammelte akademische Abhandlungen und kleine SchriftenKleine Schriftenis a German phrase often used as a title for a collection of articles and essays written by a single scholar over the course of a career. "Collected Papers" is an English equivalent. These shorter works were usually published previously in various periodicals or in collections of papers written...
, published posthumously (2 vols., Berlin, 1867)