Kovács I. (szerk.): A Magyar Természettudományi Múzeum évkönyve 78. (Budapest 1986)

Debreczy, Zs.: In memoriam Dr. Vera Csapody (1890-1985)

flowers of woods and meadows) in 1950 (34) which was a long awaited help in botany teaching and a fieldbookfor many generations of naturalists. This book was followed by weed-identification books (48, 49), a colour guide to ornamental plants (36) and an atlas for trees and shrubs edited only 20 years later (18). She also made an interesting "excursion" to the field of ethnographical botany collecting folk names of plants. Her largest collection consists of more than 7000 expressions. A small selection has also been published in a book (17). Her seedling identification manual (10) filled a long-felt gap in international specialised literature. The accurate drawings made of seedlings germinated between the double windows of her study in the museum for over 17 years were also used in an Austrian weed identification book (26). Beside painting aquarelles on dendrological subjects she began to work systematicaly as a dendrologist in 1969 with her young colleague. The book soon completed (19) was the beginning of an undertaking to compile the woody plants of the temperate climate zone of the world (20). She made 4000 full-table drawings in the following 14 years. Though she knew that she would not live to see the completion of the work, she was convinced that this work would be continued by her followers. She was capable of intensive work with enviable self-control and accuracy. This attitude gave her amazing stamina in both physically and mentally for field-work. During her life she spent thousands of days, often under harsh and simple circumstances, on excursions to paint her plants. Her life-work of illustrating over 60 books and publications and producing an estimated 20,000 drawings and 12,000 aquarelles founded a "school" in plant illustration in her country: many of her young followers consider her as their master. In recognition of her achievements she was awarded the highest official award, the State Prize in 1980. Of her valuable collection nearly 10,000 aquarelles are the property of the Botanical Department of the Hungarian Natural History Museum

—only the beautiful orchid painting collection has remained in the hands of her family. For technical reasons, her paintings have always been published repainted after fitting together in tables. It is a pity that except for some exhibitions the public has not yet been able to enjoy her aquarelles in their original beauty, to admire the accuracy combined with artistic brilliance and scientific humility. [Dr. Vera Csapody's publications in alphabetical order of the co-authors* 1. AUGUSTIN, B., JÁVORKA, S., GIOVANNINI, R. & ROMVÁRI, P. (1948): Magyar gyógynövények I-II. (Hungarian medicinal herbs.)

—Földművelésügyi Minisztérium, Budapest (190 colour plates) 2. BOROS, Á. (1953): Magyarország mohái. (Mossflora of Hungary.)

—Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest (519 drawings) 3. CSAPODY, I. (1982): Védett növényeink. (Protected plants.)—Gondolat Kiadó, Budapest (70 colour plates) 4. CSAPODY, V. (1932): Mediterrán elemek a magyar flórában. Doktori értekezés. (Mediterranean elements in the Hungarian flora.)

—Doctoral diss. (4 maps, 10 plates) 5. CSAPODY, V. (1939): Érdekes fák. (Interesting trees.)—

Magyar Cserkész, 20/20, p. 12-13. 6. CSAPODY, V. (1953): A rizs gyomnövényei. (Weeds of rice fields.)

—Annls. hist.-nat. Mus. natn. hung. 4: p. 35-45. 7. CSAPODY, V. (1961): Színes atlasz „Magyarország Kultúrflórájá"-hoz. (A colour atlas of the cultivated plants of Hungary.)

— Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest (180 colour plates) 8. CSAPODY, V. (1965): Keimlingsbestimmune;sbuch der Dicotyledonen. (Review.) — Fragm. bot. 3 (1-4): p. 109-126. 9. CSAPODY, V. (1965) : Idegen cserjék és fák parkjainkban. (Exotic shrubs and trees in our parks.) — Term. tud. Közlöny, 9 (9): p. 39-41. 10. CSAPODY, V. (1968) : Keimlingsbestimmungsbuch der Dicotyledonen. — Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest (1491 drawings) 11. CSAPODY, V. (1968): Die Ziergehölze Ungarns. — Fragm. bot. 4 (1-4): p. 109-114. 12. CSAPODY, V. ANTUSZEWICZ, M. (1973): Atlas roslin uprawnych. (A colour atlas of the cultivated plants of Hungary.) — Budapest-Warszawa, Polish edition (130 colour plates)