Louise Guthrie facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Louise Guthrie
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| Born | October 10, 1879 |
| Died | February 20, 1966 (aged 86) |
| Occupation | botanist, botanical artist |
Louise Guthrie (born October 10, 1879 – died February 20, 1966) was a talented South African botanist and an amazing artist who drew plants.
Early Life and School
Louise Guthrie was born in Cape Town, South Africa, in 1879. Her full name was Isobel Louise Sophie Guthrie. Her father, Francis Guthrie, was a botanist and a math professor. Her mother was Isabella Grisbrook. Louise went to Rustenburg Girls High School.
Her Work as a Botanist and Artist
Louise Guthrie worked as a botanical assistant at the Bolus Herbarium from 1918 to 1927. A herbarium is like a library for dried plant samples. While working there, she became very good at drawing plants. She is most famous for her collection of 264 drawings of protea flowers. Proteas are beautiful plants found in South Africa.
Louise started these drawings in 1925 and finished the last one in 1947. In 1948, she gave all her protea drawings to the Bolus Herbarium. These drawings are very important because they help scientists study different types of proteas.
Honors and Legacy
Louise Guthrie's work is remembered in the name of a plant species, guthriae, which was named in her honor.
Her beautiful plant drawings are kept at the University of Cape Town. In 2000, the Hermanus Botanical Society showed 76 of her paintings in an exhibit at the Fernkloof Nature Reserve. You can also see some of her watercolor paintings at South Africa House in London.
