Post Script

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Post ScriptGeorge Edward Post and the Post
Herbarium
Lytton John Musselman Visiting Professor Biology
Department American University of Beirut
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To find George Post we must travel to Beirut and
down Post Street. . . . .
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(No Transcript)
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. . . . and to the American University of
Beirut (AUB)
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Post ScriptGeorge Edward Post and the Post
Herbarium

• The life of George Post.
• His association with the Syrian
• Protestant College.
• III. The botanical activities of Post.

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Post ScriptGeorge Edward Post and the Post
Herbarium

• IV. The herbarium of George Post.
• The Post-Post Post Herbarium.

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Post ScriptGeorge Edward Post and the Post
Herbarium
VI. The Post Herbarium and its role in floristic
and biodiversity surveys in Lebanon, Syria, and
the region.
VII. The future of the Post Herbarium.
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Post ScriptGeorge Edward Post and the Post
Herbarium

1. The life of George Post.

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George Edward Post 1838-1909
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Born in New York City, son of Harriet Beers
and Alfred C. Post, a prominent surgeon.
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Studied Latin at age of six.
Graduated with honors from City College of New
York in 1854 at age 16.
M. S. degree in 1857.
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M. D. degree conferred in 1860.
Ordained a minister in 1861.
D.D.S. awarded in 1863.
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The Post family lived in New York state.
Sent as a medical missionary to Syria in November
1863.
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Settled in Tripoli,began medical practice
and study of Arabic.
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Remained in Tripoli from 1863 to 1868 including a
return to the United States for health reasons.
Health concerns led to giving up his
missionary position in 1868.
Modern day Tripoli from the harbor.
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Post ScriptGeorge Edward Post and the Post
Herbarium
II. His association with the Syrian Protestant
College (later AUB). Appointments. The
Lewis Affair.
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Post was appointed Professor of Surgery and
Botany in 1869. He remained in this
position, under various titles, until his death
in 1909.
George Post in the 1870s.
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Edwin Lewis
George Post and the Lewis Affair.
Edwin Lewis was Professor of Chemistry and
Geology.
The faculty of the Syrian Protestant College in
the 1870s.
Unlike Post, Lewis was a popular teacher. He was
chosen to give the commencement address in 1882.
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In his speech, Lewis spoke of three great
scientists of the age Lyell, Pasteur, and
Darwin.
Darwin was . . . an example of the
transformation of knowledge into science by
long and careful examination and accurate
thinking.
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An uproar ensued. Lewis was censured by the
mission society running the Syrian Protestant
College. Students went on strike. Faculty
resigned in support of Lewis. Most prominent
among those resigning was Cornelius Van Allen Van
Dyck who had worked closely with Post.
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C. Van Dyck was Professor of Chemistry and
Surgery (not to be confused with William Van
Dyck, his son, also a professor of surgery.)
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Cornelius Van Dyck was one of the greatest
scholars in the Middle East and translated many
books into Arabic, including the Bible. His
translation remains one of the most widely used
in the Arab world.
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Van Dyck had more than a passing interest in
botany and participated in an expedition to the
source of the Jordan River in 1877. His
familiarity with plants and work with Post led
to a Bible translation more botanically accurate
than many.
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The resignation of the Van Dycks in support of
Lewis threatened the future of the Syrian
Protestant College.
Post took a strong stand against Lewis
supporters including his friend and colleague, C.
Van Dyck. Student strikers support- ed Van Dyck
against Post.
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Student complaints against Post charged him with
cruelty, avarice, . . .injurious to the peace of
the college.
One of their demands was the demotion of Post to
the rank of instructor.
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Within a year the controversy subsided, new
faculty were hired, the student strike was
broken, and Post remained in his university
position, firmly established in his
anti-Darwinian and authoritarian stance.
It is telling that in his acknowledgements in the
flora, Post glaringly omits Van Dyck but thanks
. . . Professors Porter and Day. . .
genial companions . . .of his journeys. . . who
aided his studies. . .
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Papaver postii Fedde endemic to Cyprus
III. The Botanical Activities of George
Post 1857-1908
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The Botanical Activities of George Post 1857-1908
Early years 1857-1868
Syrian Protestant College 1869-1909 Expeditions
Exchange Correspondence
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Early Years
Little is known of Posts formal training in
botany. Physicians trained in the mid-1800s
were required to take Materia medica and other
plant-oriented courses.
Papaver postii
Post began an herbarium as a teenager, perhaps
in company with his father who also collected
plants.
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What is an herbarium?
A museum of dried plants.
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Examples of herbarium labels
Label of Alfred C. Post?
Early label of George Post
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Soon after settling in Tripoli, Post collected
plants. Between 1866 and 1869 he visited several
areas in modern day Lebanon and Syria.
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Expeditions
Post participated in several expeditions for
natural history and archeology.
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He visited Sinai in 1883 and further south. Some
specimens were collected at the pyramids.
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Post had an interest in archeology. He led to an
expedition to Palmyra (Tadmur) in 1890.
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Cyprus 1898
Most of his collecting was in the mountains.
Papaver postiii Fedde
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On the trail of George Post. He named several
plants after the Troodos region of Cyprus.
Papaver postii Fedde
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Among taxa he described from Cyprus are
Calamintha troodii, Cyperus cyprius, Dianthus
multipunctatus Ser. var. troodi, Euphorbia
troodii, Ferula cypria, Phlomis cypria,
Saponaria cyprica, Scabiosa cyprica, Sideritis
cypria, and Teucrium cypricum.
Papaver postii Fedde
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Post received many specimens from a Mrs. Shepard,
a physician living in Aintab. He named several
plants in her honor including Achillaea shepardi,
Astragalus shephardi, Campanula
shepardi,Centaurea shepardi, Erigeron shepardi,
Knautia shepardi, Medicago shepardi, and Nepeta
shepardi.
Aintab
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Post incorporated Shepards specimens under his
own name.
Labels from the type Specimen of Ferulago
kurdica.
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He also received specimens from Mardin and
vicinity from an unknown source (Mrs. Shepard?)
and named these new species Nepeta mardinensis
and Verbascum mardinense.
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Post collected many plants from the Hauran
Region southeast of Damascus and named new taxa.
The Hauran region of Syria
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These include Chaerophyllum auranitacum, Cynara
auranitica, Dianthus auraniticus, and Ferulago
auranitica.
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Post visited western Turkey on several occasions
to represent the medical college to Ottoman
authorities and also perhaps to visit his son,
Bartram Van Dyck Post, a Professor of Botany and
Zoology at Robert College.
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Bartram Van Dyck Post carried on the Post family
tradition of botany. He published one of the
first floras of the Bosphorus region.
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Examples of Posts labels from Turkey.
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His last trip to Turkey was apparently in 1903.
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Correspondents-Exchange
European correspondents included
Balfour
Blanche
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Boissier (collected by Haussknecht)
Gaillardot
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Hulsen
LeTourneux
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Tauscher
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Schweinfurth, who sent plants from Egypt.
Inscription in Schweinfurths Flora Aethiopiens
to Dr. G. Post by J. Ascherson
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Specimens obtained by Post are sought by
scientists documenting disappearing flora in
their countries.
For example, a botanist in Istanbul, studying
vegetation changes in the Bosphorus region,
inquired about endangered species that might be
in the Post collection.
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Two species were found
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Her response indicates the value
botanists recognize in the Post Herbarium
. . .if you have got Aznovors specimens in
Beyrut, they are treasure. Please protect
Aznovours collections very well.
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North American Exchange
Post participated in an exchange program (from
Harvard University?) that published a list of
species for exchange.
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Post tried to obtain as many U. S. specimens as
possible Many well known U. S. collectors
are represented in Posts collection.
Plants which I have are marked out
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These collectors include

• W. M. Canby
• H. Curtis
• D. C. Eaton
• C. Mohr
• E. S. Palmer
• and many
• others.

Loranthus from Australia. Ex herbarium of D. C.
Eaton.
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As a result, the Post Herbarium contains a
surprising array of plants from many different
parts of the world.
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Annotations
The numerous annotations on specimens in the
Post Herbarium attest to its importance in plant
biology in the region.
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Annotations
Many specimens were annotated by Paul Mouterde.
Other botanists include
Alexander Eig, Jerusalem
N. Vavilov, St. Petersburg
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Correspondence-Letters
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Correspondence of George Post
Post wrote to botanists at Kew (Baker), St.
Petersburg (Winkler), Geneva (Autran, Barbey,
Boissier) and elsewhere.
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William Barbey, son-in-law to Edmond Boissier,
was one of Posts most frequent
correspondents. Many Post specimens have both a
Post number and a Barbey number. Post named
several plants after Barbey including Astragalus
barbeyanus, Eragrostis barbeyi, Ferula barbeyi,
Hieracium barbeyi, and Verbascum barbeyi.
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His correspondence was extensive. 133 letters are
preserved at Geneva
Correspondence found in the Post Herbarium
includes
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Schweinfurth
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Bornmüller
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Autran
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Post was strongly influenced by Edmond Boissier.
Arrangement of families in his flora and in his
herbarium follow that of Flora Orientalis
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Posts copy of Flora Orientalis
marking Boissiers stand on Darwinism.
For my part, I never accepted to any degree the
Darwinian theory. . . .
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Plants Named for George Post Genera Postia
Boiss et Blanc. Postiella Kljuykov Species Cen
taurea postii Boiss. Papaver postii
Fedde Tracheliopsis postii Buser
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Did Post Specialize in any groups? His
interest spanned all angiosperms but he named
more species (14) of Verbascum than any other
group including
Verbascum aintabicum, V. aliciae, V. antari, V.
barbeyi, V. boissieri, V. caudatum, V.
fruticulosum, V. gadarense, V. karyeteini ,
V. macranthum, V. mardinense, V. palmyrense,
V. porteri, and V. qulebicum.  
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Publications of George Post
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In addition to his better known botanical
works, Post edited a medical journal in Arabic
and translated several books.
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Posts concordance of the Bible, still in print
in the 1970s.
List of publications in first edition of the
flora
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Posts flora in Arabic
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1883?
Posts handwritten manuscript treating Cephalaria
Biscutella from the Arabic flora. (Apparently
volume II never appeared).
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Posts best known work, edition I of the flora
1884. The second edition was produced by J.
E. Dinsmore in the 1930s.
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The Post Herbarium forms the basis for this
flora.
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. . few men would have attempted to carry such
a book through to press in Syria, fewer still
would have succeeded so triumphantly.
Review of Posts flora, source unknown, pasted in
Posts copy.
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At the time of his death, he had completed the
manuscript of a dictionary of botany and
zoology that was never published.
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Most of the plants named by Post were described
in a series called Plantae Postianae published by
the Bossier Herbarium in Geneva.
Posts Latin description of Statice palmyrensis.
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Post ScriptGeorge Edward Post and the Post
Herbarium
IV. The herbarium of George Post.
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In 1904, the herbarium was moved to Science
Hall (later called Post Hall) where it
apparently remained until 1953. It is now
housed in the Faculty of Agriculture.
Post Hall on the AUB campus
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Lets go there. . . .
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Welcome to the Post Herbarium
American University of Beirut
Nada Sinno Saoud
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Components of the Collection

• The herbarium of
• George Post.
• 2. Specimens added
• after Post, i.e., after
• 1909.

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Post Collection

• Specimens collected by George Post.
• Specimens obtained by exchange.
• Materia Medica.
• Economic Botany Collection.
• Tropical Ferns-Dodge collection.
• Bryophytes from Ceylon and Hawaii.
• Fungi from Budapest Museum.

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The Collection of George Post

• According to Dinsmore (1932), the Post collection
  contains an estimated 20 000 sheets. This
  includes specimens contributed by students. To
  this day, most of the sheets are Posts
  specimens.
• Plants obtained by exchange.

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The most valuable specimens are type specimens.
According to international botanical code, the
name of the plant is based on the type specimen.
Sideritis cypria Post
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This is the type specimen of a species Post named
from Cyprus. Wherever and however this name is
used, it is linked with this single specimen.
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The Materia Medica collection of the Post
Herbarium
Materia medica was a required course for medical
students to learn plants used for compound
medicines. Teaching it was apparently considered
equivalent to teaching an introductory course.
Post asked to be released from teaching this
course.
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Economic Botany Collection acquired by exchange
of specimens with Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew in
1882
Tamarindus indicus
Hematoxylin
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Dodge Fern Collection
Cyathea dealbata
Adiantum formosa
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Dodge Fern Collection
Posts report on the herbarium in 1889 states
The herbarium has been enriched by a magnificent
collection of ferns from all quarters of the
world, gathered and beautifully mounted by the
late Mrs. Stuart Dodge, and presented by her
husband to the college.
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Bryophytes from Ceylon and Hawaii
Hypnum
Hawaian Islands
A collection of several hundred specimens.
Collector and source unknown.
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Bryophytes from Ceylon and Hawaii
Climacium subserratum
Central Province of Ceylon
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Fungi from Budapest Museum
Less than 100 specimens possibly obtained through
contact with J. Bornmüller, who had links with
Hungary.
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Post ScriptGeorge Edward Post and the Post
Herbarium

• VI. The Post-Post Post Herbarium
• History
• Collections

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The Post-Post Post Herbarium

• Alfred Ely Day was appointed Professor of Botany
  after Posts death in 1909.
• In 1922, the herbarium was apparently transferred
  to pharmacy. Day was appointed Professor of
  Botany in Pharmacy.

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The Post-Post Post Herbarium

• John Edward Dinsmore of the American Colony in
  Jerusalem begin his revision of Posts flora in
  the 1920s.
• Apparently, this led to the cataloging of all the
  specimens in the herbarium in the 1930s.

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The Post-Post Post Herbarium
Catalog prepared by Tateos V. Yegavian in
1930-31. Yegavian was a business student.
Each sheet is recorded with name, synonym,
collector, location, annotation information, and
date.
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The Post-Post Post Herbarium
This remarkable catalog provides an accurate
account of the collection as it existed in the
early 1930 and can be consulted to see which of
the original specimens are still intact.
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The Post-Post Post Herbarium
At least up to 1931, some curatorial work was
done in the herbarium. Elie Hammam was an
Instructor of Botany who Dinsmore corresponded
with regarding herbarium matters. (Hamman met
his untimely death falling off Mt. Sannine at
age 23).
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The Post-Post Post Herbarium
Little is known about activities in the herbarium
between the time of the publication of the second
edition of the flora and 1953.
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The Post-Post Post Herbarium
By 1953, interest in the herbarium had apparently
waned. It was moved to agriculture through the
efforts of Winnie Edgecombe, an instructor in
agriculture.
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The Post-Post Post Herbarium
Edgecombe is best known for her two books on
weeds of Lebanon
Weeds of Lebanon
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The Post-Post Post Herbarium
Most of the accessions after 1953 were from the
collections of Winnie Edgecombe.
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The Post-Post Post Herbarium
With the establishment of the Faculty of
Agriculture in 1953, emphasis was placed on weeds
and range plants. A small Range Management
Herbarium was established.
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The Post-Post Post Herbarium
When the School of Pharmacy was closed in 1977,
Professor Charles Abu Chaar moved to the Biology
Department and assumed responsibility for the
herbarium.
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The Post-Post Post Herbarium
The civil war and invasions in Lebanon led to
the departure of Shaukat Chaudhry who was
curating the herbarium in the 1970s.
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The Post-Post Post Herbarium
During the difficult war years, Professor Abu
Chaar looked after the herbarium.
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Euphorbia macrostegia
Asphodeline liburnica
Aubretia libanotica
Cedrus libani
Iris sofarana
VII. The role of the Post Herbarium in
biodiversity and floristic studies in Lebanon,
Syria, and the region.
Chouf onosma
Origanum libanoticum
Vinca libanotica
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Euphorbia macrostegia
Asphodeline liburnica
Aubretia libanotica
Cedrus libani
Iris sofarana
The Post Herbarium is the oldest, largest, and
most comprehensive herbarium in Lebanon and
Syria.
Chouf onosma
Origanum libanoticum
Vinca libanotica
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Euphorbia macrostegia
Asphodeline liburnica
Aubretia libanotica
Cedrus libani
Iris sofarana
Well known to botanists who work in the region,
the Post Herbarium is an invaluable resource
reflecting the scientific work of AUB
faculty, most notably George Post.
Chouf onosma
Origanum libanoticum
Vinca libanotica
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Euphorbia macrostegia
Asphodeline liburnica
Aubretia libanotica
Surveys of crop relatives and other useful
plants in Lebanon and Syria have stimulated new
interest in the Post Herbarium.
Cedrus libani
Iris sofarana
Chouf onosma
Origanum libanoticum
Vinca libanotica
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VIII. The Future of the Post Herbarium
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The Future of the Post Herbarium
In a word-Bright!!
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The Future of the Post Herbarium
A manager has been appointed and the collection
is being curated.
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The Future of the Post Herbarium
A major effort is being placed on the location
and curation of type specimens. To date, types
of 133 of the 214 plants named by Post have been
found. Types are being scanned and will be
available on a web site.
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The Future of the Post Herbarium
The herbarium will be upgraded, curated and
housed in new facilities. It will occupy an
entire floor of Post Hall.
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The Future of the Post Herbarium
Almost 1000 square feet will be available for the
new herbarium.
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The Future of the Post Herbarium
Bust of Post in Post Hall
Post Hall is named for George Post and was
designed by him.
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The Future of the Post Herbarium
The great want of the museums is a permanent
Assistant Curator, who shall not only keep
present collections from deteriorating, but aid
in enlarging and arranging them in such a way as
shall most contribute to their educational
value. Report on the museum by Post in July 1891
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The Future of the Post Herbarium
The great want of the museums is a permanent
Assistant Curator, who shall not only keep
present collections from deteriorating, but aid
in enlarging and arranging them in such a way as
shall most contribute to their educational
value. Report on the museum by Post in July 1891
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George Post inspires botanists almost a
century after his death.
Visit the Plants of Lebanon web site
at http//webfaculty.aub.edu.lb/lm10 for
checklists and images of plants of Lebanon and
Syria.
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George Post inspires botanists almost a
century after his death.
Visit the Plants of Lebanon web site
at http//webfaculty.aub.edu.lb/lm10 for
scanned copies of Posts and Mouterdes
manuscripts and notes.
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Acknowledgements
Cedrus libani Tannourine
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Financial support for the herbarium from the
Darwin Project, AUB.
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Biology Department, AUB, for support and
encouragement.
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Archives section of Jafet Library, American
University of Beirut.
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Staff and students who work in natural areas in
Lebanon, especially Tannourine Shouf and Ehden.
133
Old Dominion University for unflagging support
for three decades.
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Libby and John for love and support for a
husband and father who loves plants.
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Lets go!!