Gränby, Uppsala, Sverige
At Gränby Linnéminne (Gränby Linnaeus Heritage Site) you can learn more about the women around Linnaeus.
Women did not take up studies in Linnaeus’ time, but there were many clever women who did have interests. As the father of several daughters, Linnaeus was in favour of women taking up botany. He therefore translated the sexual system into Swedish. He furthermore believed women would advance botany because they were, according to him, closer to nature. He corresponded with many women in his network, and encouraged them in their work.
In father’s footsteps
Of Linnaeus’ daughters, Lisa Stina was the one most interested in following in her father’s footsteps. When she was 19, she saw something very remarkable at Hammarby. There seemed to be a flash of light from the nasturtium flowers in the twilight. Linnaeus helped her write a paper about this, which was published. They thought it was electricity passing through the flowers, but it was in fact an optical phenomenon caused by the colour of the flowers.
Art as a memorial
Gränby Linnéminne was opened in 2003. One of Linnaeus’ daughters, Sara Stina, lived at the farm Gränby gård from 1798 until 1835. The house she lived in burnt down in 1972, and a work of art now stands as its memorial. The garden is still there, providing pasture for livestock from the nearby 4H farm. Some of the plants there today were probably taken from Hammarby by Sara Stina, for example horse chestnut, Turk’s-cap lily and Hammarby houseleek. In the large green area round the site you can still make out the fields belonging to the farm.
Rosehip, buttercup or Linnea? Make our floral tests based on knowledge from both Linnaeus botany and Jungian psychology. Go to the test.
Step right into the 18th century and the home of Carl Linnaeus.