Home > Johann Jakob Scheuchzer

The son of the senior town physician (or Archiater) of Zürich, he received his education in that place, and in 1692 went to the university of Altdorf near Nuremberg, being intended for the medical profession. Early in 1694 he took his degree of doctor in medicine at the University of Utrecht, and then returned to Altdorf, Germany to complete his mathematical studies. He went back to Zürich in 1696, and was made junior town physician (or Poliater), with the promise of the professorship of mathematics; this he obtained in 1710, being promoted to the chair of physics, with the office of senior town physician, in January 1733, a few months before his death on June 23.

His published works (apart from numerous articles) were estimated at thirty-four in number. His historical writings are mostly still in manuscriptA manuscript ( Latin manu scriptus written by hand), strictly speaking, is any written document that is put down by hand, in contrast to being printed or reproduced some other way. Manuscripts in history Before the invention of the printing press, all wri. The more important of his published writings relate either to his scientific observation s (all branches) or to his journeys, in the course of which he collected materials for these scientific works.

In the former category are his Beschreibung der Naturgeschichte des Schweitzerlandes (5 vols., Zürich, 1706—1708), the 3rd volume containing an account in German of his journey of 1705Events Construction begins on Blenheim Palace, in Oxfordshire, England. It is completed in 1724 The Sophia Naturalization Act 1705 is passed by the English Parliament, which naturalized Sophia of Hanover and the "issue of her body" as British subjects.; a new edition of this book and, with important omissions, of his 1723Events February 16 Louis XV of France attains his majority Births February 24 John Burgoyne, British general. March 31 King Frederick V of Denmark April 30 Mathurin Jacques Brisson, French zoologist and natural philosopher (died 1806) June 5 Adam Smith, S work, was issued, in 2 vols., in 1746Events January 8 Bonnie Prince Charlie occupies Stirling April 16 Battle of Culloden brings an end to the Jacobite Risings October 22 The College of New Jersey is founded (it becomes Princeton University in 1896) October 28 An earthquake demolishes Lima a, by J.G. Sulzer, under the title of Naturgeschichte des Schweitzerlandes sammt seinen Reisen über die schweitzerischen Gebirge, and his Helvetiae historia naturalis oder Naturhistorie des Schweitzerlandes (published in 3 vols., at Zürich, 1716—1718, and reissued in the same form in 1752, under the German title just given). The first of the three parts of the last-named work deals with the Swiss mountainThis article is about the landform. For other meanings, see Mountain (disambiguation). Mount Cook, a mountain in New Zealand A mountain is a landform that extends above the surrounding terrain in a limited area. A mountain is generally much higher and stes (summing up all that was then known about them, and serving as a link between Simler's work of 1574Events April 14 Battle of Mookerheyde. Spanish forces under Sancho de Avila defeat the rebel forces of Louis of Nassau. Louis is killed. May 30 On the death of King Charles IX of France, he is succeeded by his brother King Henry of Poland, who becomes Kin and Gruner's of 1760), the second with the Swiss rivers, lakes and mineral baths, and the third with Swiss meteorology and geology.

Scheuchzer’s works, as issued in 1746 and in 1752, formed (with Tschudi 's Chronicum Helveticum) one of the chief sources for Schiller's drama Wilhelm Tell ( 1804). In 1704 Scheuchzer was elected a F.R.S.; he published many scientific notes and papers in the Philosophical Transactions for 1706— 1707, 1709 and 1727— 1728.

In the second category are his Itinera alpina tria (made in 1702— 1704), which was published in London in 1708, and dedicated to the Royal Society, while the plates illustrating it were executed at the expense of various fellows of the society, including the president, Sir Isaac Newton (whose imprimatur appears on the title-page), Hans Sloane, Dean Aldrich, Humfrey Wanley , etc. The text is written in Latin, as is that of the definitive work describing his travels (with which is incorporated the 1708 volume) that appeared in 1723 at Leiden, in four quarto volumes, under the title of Itinera per Helvetiae alpinas regiones facta annis 1702—1711.

These journeys led Scheuchzer to almost every part of Switzerland, particularly its central and eastern districts. Apropos of his visit ( 1705) to the Rhone glacier, he inserts a full account of the other Swiss glaciers, as far as they were then known, while in 1706, after mentioning certain wonders to be seen in the museum at Lucerne, he adds reports by men of good faith who had seen dragons in Switzerland. He doubts their existence, but illustrates the reports by fanciful representations of dragons, which have led some modern writers to depreciate his merits as a traveller and naturalist, for the belief, in dragons was then widely spread.

In 1712 he published, a map of Switzerland in four sheets (scale 1/290,000), of which the east portion (based on his personal observations) is far the most accurate, though the map as a whole was the best map of Switzerland till the end of the 18th century. At the end of his 1723 book he gives a full list (covering 27 4to pages) of his writings from 1694 to 1721.

See F. X. Hoeherl, J.J. Scheuchzer, der Begründer d. phys. Geographie d. Hochgebirges (Munich, 1901), a useful little pamphlet, conveniently summarizing Scheuchzer's scientific views.

This entry was originally from the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.