Researchers have uncovered lecture notes from two major 19th-century scientists: the anatomist Carl Gegenbaur and the notorious evolutionist Ernst Haeckel. The richly illustrated notes from the winter semester 1865/66 at the University of Jena provide insights into the state of knowledge at that time and the teaching methods in the subject areas. They also come from an important student: It was Nikolai Miklucho-Maclay, who later became an anthropologist and explorer and fell out with Haeckel because of his racist theses.
They are among the prominent figures in the history of science in Germany: Carl Gegenbaur (1826 to 1903) and Ernst Haeckel (1834 to 1919) have had a lasting influence on developments in their fields. They also influenced each other – among other things, during their simultaneous work as professors at the Friedrich Schiller University in Jena. Both were strong supporters of Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution. The physician, anatomist, zoologist and physiologist Gegenbaur is considered one of the most important vertebrate morphologists of the 19th century and a pioneer of modern evolutionary morphology.
Haeckel, on the other hand, was even referred to as the “German Darwin”. Because the doctor, zoologist and free thinker conveyed the theory of evolution to a broad public in Germany through his publications. But the then renowned scientist cast a dark shadow. For some of his theses on the history of human evolution are directly connected to social Darwinism, to racial studies and finally to the racial hygiene of the Third Reich. He is thus assigned a role in the development of inhuman views – and actions.
“A sensational discovery”
The University of Jena was an important basis for Haeckel. There he gave lectures in zoology. Gegenbaur taught the students human anatomy there. It was previously assumed that no transcripts of these two events have survived. But now the biology didactics Uwe Hoßfeld and Georgy Levit from the University of Jena are presenting such documents. They tracked them down in Nikolai Miklucho-Maclay’s estate, kept in the archives of the Russian Geographical Society in St. Petersburg.
The later naturalist, who originally came from Russia, took part in the lectures of both scholars in the winter semester of 1865/66 and made extremely careful notes. It can be assumed that Miklucho-Maclay did not follow up on the lecture, but instead copied the content directly from the lecture and from the blackboard into his notes, write the Jena researchers. “This discovery is a sensation!” says Hoßfeld. “The transcripts allow us exciting insights into the history and visualization of zoology and the comparative anatomy of those years”.
Richly illustrated notes from an honorable hand
Miklucho-Maclay sometimes wrote in German, sometimes in Russian, and the notes were peppered with numerous abbreviations. As a result, the transcripts are sometimes difficult to read. The scientists say that transcribing the texts was therefore a mammoth task that took three years. But it was worth it. Together with other researchers, Hoßfeld and Levit have now published the two lecture notes. In addition to the written insights, it is also particularly interesting that the lecture notes show Haeckel, Gegenbaur and Miklucho-Maclay as skilful draftsmen and aesthetes. Because the notes are supplemented by numerous detailed illustrations that were obviously shown in the lectures.
The discovery also puts renewed focus on Miklucho-Maclay, who deserves more attention, as Hossfeld and Levit previously pointed out in a publication. The talented student initially became an assistant to Haeckel and even went on research trips with him. From 1870 Miklucho-Maclay then independently undertook expeditions to New Guinea to research the local population, the Papuans. This was followed by a break with Haeckel because Miklucho-Maclay did not share his views on human races and eventually even scientifically refuted them. His observations and experiences with the Papuans showed that Haeckel’s assumption was wrong that there are different stages of development among the people currently living and therefore different human “types/races”.
It was piquant that Haeckel himself had postulated that scientific knowledge requires observing and examining living beings in their natural environment. Nikolai Miklucho-Maclay adhered to these criteria, but Haeckel did not. “Miklucho-Maclay can rightly be described as the first empirical anti-racist in the natural sciences,” says Hossfeld.
Source: Friedrich Schiller University Jena
Original publications:
Lectures on human anatomy by Carl Gegenbaur, THK-Verlag, Arnstadt 2022, 271 pages, num. Illustrations, ISBN: 978-3-945068-56-4
Lectures on zoology by Ernst Haeckel, THK-Verlag, Arnstadt 2022, 179 pages, num. Illustrations, ISBN: 978-3-945068-55-7