Archives #1: A very smelly flower

 
‘An account of a new genus of plants, named Rafflesia’, R. Brown, 1821 (source: Biodiversity Heritage Library)

‘An account of a new genus of plants, named Rafflesia’, R. Brown, 1821 (source: Biodiversity Heritage Library)

IN 1818, Robert Brown, librarian of the Linnean Society, received a peculiar account from the statesman, natural philosopher, abolitionist, and fellow of the Royal Society Stamford Raffles. In his letter, the future founder of Singapore reported on an unusual discovery, made in the course of his expedition from the city of Bengkulu (Indonedia) into the interior of Sumatra.1

During this journey, he was accompanied, among other people, by his wife, several Malay servants, and the zealous naturalist Joseph Arnold, who died of a fever soon after the unexpected event. “You will lament to hear that we have lost Dr. Arnold,” Raffles writes to Brown,”he fell a sacrifice to his exertions on my first tour into the interior, and died of fever about a fortnight ago. It is impossible I can do justice to his memory by any feeble encomiums I may pass on his character; he was in every thing what he should have been, devoted to science and the acquisition of knowledge, and aiming only at usefulness.”2

Before the man of science passed away, he was able to draft a letter to one of his friends, recounting the incredible discovery. Here is an extract, transcribed by Raffles:

 

“[…] here (at Pulo Lebbar, on the Manna River, two days journey inland of Manna) I rejoice to tell you I happened to meet with what I consider the greatest prodigy of the vegetable world. I had ventured some way from the party, when one of the Malay servants came running to me with wonder in his eyes, and said, “Come with me, Sir, come! a flower, very large, beautiful, wonderful!” I immediately went with the man about a hundred yards in the jungle and he pointed to a flower growing close to the ground under the bushes, which was truly astonishing. My first impulse was to cut it up and carry it to the hut. I therefore seized the Malay’s parang (a sort of instrument like a woodman’s chopping-hook), and finding that it sprang from a small root which ran horizontally (about as large as two fingers, or a little more), I soon detached it and removed it to our hut. To tell you the truth, had I been alone, and had there been no witnesses, I should think I have been fearful of mentioning the dimensions of this flower, so much does it exceed every flower I have ever seen or heard of; but I had Sir Stamford and Lady Raffles with me, and a Mr. Palsgrave, a respectable man residing at Manna, who, though equally astonished with myself, yet are able to testify as to the truth.

The whole flower was of a very thick substance, the petals and nectary being in but few places less than a quarter of an inch thick, and in some places three quarters of a inch; the substance of it was very succulent. When I first saw it a swarm of flies were hovering over the mouth of the nectary, and apparently laying their eggs in the substance of it. It had precisely the smell of tainted beef. […]

Now for the dimensions, which are the most astonishing part of the flower. It measured a full yard across [91 centimetres]; the petals, which were subrotund, being twelve inches [30.5 centimetres] from the base to the apex, and it being about a foot [ibid.] from the insertion of the one petal to the opposite one; Sir Stamford, Lady Raffles and myself taking immediate measures to be accurate in this respect, by pinning four large sheets of paper together, and cutting them to the precise size of the flower. The nectarium in the opinion of all of us would hold twelve pints [5.7 litres], and the weight of this prodigy were calculated to be fifteen pounds [6,8 kilograms]. […]

There were no leaves or branches to this plant; so that it is probable that the stems bearing leaves issue forth at a different period of the year. The soil where this plant grew was very rich, and covered with the excrement of elephants.

A guide from the interior of the country said, that such flowers were rare, but that he had seen several, and that the native called them Krûbût.

I have now nearly finished a coloured drawing of it on as large drawing paper as I could procure, but it is still considerably under the natural size, and I propose also to make another drawing of the pistil removed from the nectarium.

I have now, I believe, given you as detailed an account of this prodigious plant as the subject admits of; indeed it is all I know of it. […]”

 

Robert Brown presented these findings in 1820 to the Linnean Society, and the flower was named Rafflesia arnoldii in honour of the two men. It is known by many today for producing the largest individual flower on Earth (up to 105 centimetres), and for its ominous smell of decaying flesh, destined to attract the carrion-flies that pollinate it 3.

**

Emma Hollen


REFERENCES

  1. “Stamford Raffles”. Wikipedia. Accessed on 28 Oct. 2019.

  2. Brown, R. (1821). An account of a new genus of plants, named Rafflesia. Transactions of the Linnean Society. Taylor, Chicago.

  3. “Rafflesia arnoldii”. Kew Science. Accessed on 28 Oct. 2019.

  4. (Images) “An account of a new genus of plants, named Rafflesia” (compiled by Biodiversity Heritage Library). Flickr. Accessed on 28 Oct. 2019.




 
History of Science, Botany, ExplorersEmma HollenHistory of Science, Botany, ExplorersComment