A brilliant and restless spirit, Odoardo Beccari (Florence, 1843-1920) was a great naturalist and leading exponent of Italian scientific culture of his era. His fame derives in large part from his botanical studies, but he also conducted research in zoology, anthropology, and viticulture. Like Roster, he joined the Italian Photography Society, and late in his career developed into an excellent photographer of nature.
Beccari’s scientific expeditions, which were challenging and often perilous adventures, made a fundamental contribution to the botanical and ecological knowledge of the Indo-Malaysian archipelago.
Beccari did not utilize his photographic apparatus in his early field studies, depending instead on his notable talent for drawing naturalist subjects. He would later become an impassioned photographer, achieving magnificent results especially in his images of palm trees, a subject of which he was a world expert.
