Varga Benedek szerk.: Orvostörténeti közlemények 147-148. (Budapest, 1994)

TANULMÁNYOK - ESSAYS - Szabadváry Ferenc—Vámos Éva: A nagyszombati egyetem orvoskari kémikusai

Az 1848-as márciusi forradalom után az Egyetemi Tanács már március 22-én elrendelte a magyar nyelvű oktatást. Sangaletti ironikus levélben jelezte, hogy három nap alatt sajnos semmiképpen nem tud megtanulni magyarul, és ezért a feltételt nem tudja teljesíteni. Ekkor Nendtvichet hívták meg az előadások tartására, aki 1848. árpilis 4-én tartotta az elő magyar nyelvű kémiaelőadást magyar egyetemen. Dicsősége nem tartott sokáig. Windischgrätz bevonulása után, 1849-ben Sangaletti került vissza és vezette a tanszéket a fentebb jelzett módon, 1853-ban történt nyugalomba vonulásáig. Utóda megint Bécsből jött Theodor Wertheim személyében, aki lényegesen jobb professzor és kémikus volt elődjénél. 1860-ig a magyar nyelv újra bevezetéséig vezette a tanszéket, nem is eredménytelenül. Ekkor átadta helyét Than Károlynak és maga a grazi egyetemre távozott. Mindez azonban már meghaladja témánkat. A Thun-féle felsőoktatási reform alapján 1850-ben a kémiai tanszéket szervezetileg az orvoskarról a bölcsészeti karra sorolták be, mivel az egyetemen megindult a középiskolai tanárképzés. Ám az orvoshallgatóknak még közel száz évig ez a tanszék oktatta továbbra is a kémiát, 1877-től megosztva az újonnan szervezett 2. számú kémiai tanszékkel. FERENC SZABADVÁRY, Ph. D. ; D. Sc. ÉVA VÁMOS, Ph. D. Országos Műszaki Múzeum Kaposvár u. 13—15. Pf. 3115 Budapest, H-1112 Hungary SUMMARY After a short introduction on the development of the medieval universities at Pécs, Óbuda, and Pozsony, and mentioning those who lectured in medicine in Hungary, the authors emphasise that modern chemistry was born during the 16th and 17th century. They stress the role of Paracelsus who invented iatrochemistry, and that the first independent chairs, were founded in Germany in the beginning of 17th century at Altdorf, Marburg, Jéna, but were followed suit by Paris, when the Jardin des Plantes were erected. The first chemical textbook, the Cours de Chimie (Paris 1665), was also the work of a Frenchman, namely Nicolas Lémery (1645—1715). From the 18th century chemistry was also included in the curriculum of medical education in Hungary. Among the chairs of the newly founded medical faculty at Nagyszombat we find the chemicalbotanical department in 1769. Its first professor was an Austrian physician Jakab Winterl (1773—1809), who had been a head physician at Selmecbánya, in Northern Hungary. Owing to a rash and premature publication Winterl's international reputation was unfortunately undermined in the last century by a leading German science historian, Hermann Kopp. The authors stress, however, that Winterl indeed played an important role in organizing the chemical department, and purchassing all the necessary equipment needed for up to date researches and analyses. And above all, in his Prolusiones ad chemiam saeculi decimi noni, he foresaw many forthcoming paths and discoveries of 19th century chemistry. After Winterl's retirement the department was divided into two parts. Pál Kitaibel (1757—1817) led the botanical department and János Schuster (1777—1838) the other one for chemistry. Kitaibel made a name for himself by depicting Hungarian flora, but he also made discoveries in chemistry. He discovered chlore lime, before Tennant in 1795, a material which might have been used for whitening textiles. Schuster, on the other hand, introduced a system of Hungarian terms for chemical science. He was also the first chemist among the members of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. After his death in 1838 the professorship had been vacant for two years, because the authorities did not want to nominate Schuster's assistant, the devoted patriot Károly Nendtvich (1811—1892). It was eventually E. Sangaletti, who was appointed, in spite that he had not produced any publication at all, upon which his application to the professorship in chemistry to the Prague University had been turned down.