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José Antonio de Alzate y Ramírez

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José Antonio de Alzate y Ramírez.

José Antonio de Alzate y Ramírez (20 November 1737 – 2 February 1799[1]) was a priest in New Spain, scientist, historian, and cartographer.[2]

Life and career

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Alzate y Ramírez's Plano de la Nueva España, 1770

He was born in Ozumba in 1737, the child of Felipe de Alzate and María Josefa Ramírez, a descendant of Juana Inés de la Cruz. He studied in the Colegio de San Ildefonso in Mexico City, graduating with a bachelor in theology in 1756.[3] He was ordained a Catholic priest at the age of 20.[4]

Inaugurated in 1768, his Diario literario de Méjico [Literary Newspaper of Mexico] was suspended after only three months. He later created, in 1788, the Gaceta de Literatura [Newspaper of Literature], that was published until 1795 (115 issues).[4] This periodical inspired many of his countrymen to follow his example.[5]

Alzate was a controversial figure, frequently meeting with local opposition.[6] Nevertheless, the French[6] and Spanish Academies of Sciences[citation needed] made him a corresponding member. The viceroys of Mexico and the archbishops entrusted him with sundry scientific missions.[6]

He was a member of the Royal Botanical Garden of Madrid.[4] He died in Mexico City in 1799.[1]

Works

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Alzate wrote more than thirty treatises, on subjects including astronomy, physics, meteorology, antiquities, mathematics, and metallurgy. These include:[4][6]

  • Observaciones meteorológicas ("Weather observations"), 1769
  • Observación del paso de Venus por el disco del Sol ("Observation of the passage of Venus by the disc of the Sun"), 1770
  • Modelo y descripción de los hornos de Almadén ("Model and description of the furnaces of Almadén")
  • Notes, additions and maps for Francisco Javier Clavijero's Historia Antigua de México ("Ancient History of Mexico")
  • Mapa de la América del Norte ("Map of North America")
  • La limite des niéges perpetuelles en Volcan Popocatepetl

Alzate attained a high reputation as a zoologist and botanist. He conducted several scientific experiments, and wrote numerous articles that were published in science journals.[4] Several of his papers discuss the growing of silk in Mexico. He also wrote a dissertation on the use of ammonia in combating mephitic gases in abandoned mines.[6]

In 1772, he published work that showed that the well-known psychedelic effects of pipiltzintzintli were due to natural causes and not the work of the devil (Memoria del uso que hacen los indios de los pipiltzintzintlis; México, D.F.: Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México).[7] A study from 2020 confirms that he actively fought for the legislation of medical cannabis.[8]

Alzate's account of Xochicalco was the first published description of the ruins.[6] His research led the way for modern exploration of Mexican antiquities.

Legacy

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In his honor, the Sociedad Científica Antonio Alzate (Antonio Alzate Scientific Society) was created in 1884. In 1935, this society became the National Academy of Sciences.[4] A dam and reservoir are named in his honor in the State of Mexico, north of Toluca.[9] Plant genus Alzatea (the only genus in Alzateaceae) is named after him.[10]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "José Antonio de Alzate y Ramírez". Enciclopedia de la literatura en México (in Spanish). Secretary of Culture, Government of Mexico.
  2. ^ J. Benedict Warren, "An Introductory Survey of Secular Writings in the European Tradition on Colonial Middle America, 1503-1818, item 97, "José Antonio de Alzate y Ramírez, (1737-96)" in Handbook of Middle American Indians, vol. 13. Guide to Ethnohistorical Sources, Howard F. Cline, volume editor. Austin: University of Texas Press 1973, p.90.
  3. ^ "José Antonio Alzate" (in Spanish). Government of the State of Mexico. Retrieved 19 November 2018.
  4. ^ a b c d e f "Jose Antonio de Alzate and Ramirez Archived 2006-01-17 at the Wayback Machine". Biblioteca Virtual Ignacio Larramendi: Colección de Polígrafos Hispanoamericanos. Fundación Ignacio Larramendi. URL accessed 2006-09-27. (in Spanish)
  5. ^ Rose, Hugh James (1857). "Alzate y Ramirez, José Antonio". A New General Biographical Dictionary. Vol. 1 AA–ANS. London: B. Fellowes et al. p. 373.
  6. ^ a b c d e f  Bandelier, Adolph Francis Alphonse (1907). "José Antonio Alzate". In Herbermann, Charles (ed.). Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 1. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
  7. ^ Brad Richard Huber, Alan R. Sandstrom. Mesoamerican Healers. University of Texas Press. ISBN 0-292-73456-5. p 62.
  8. ^ Dierksmeier, Laura (July 7, 2020). "Forbidden herbs: Alzate's defense of pipiltzintzintlis". Colonial Latin American Review. 29 (2): 292–315. doi:10.1080/10609164.2020.1755941. S2CID 221064432. Retrieved July 10, 2020.
  9. ^ "Opportunities and Challenges for Sustainable Urban Water Management in Mexico City Archived 2006-09-02 at the Wayback Machine. LEAD Case Study. URL accessed 2006-09-28.
  10. ^ Ruiz Lopez H, Pavon JA (1794) Florae Peruvianae et Chilensis Prodromus. Madrid: Imprenta de Sancha

Further reading

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  • Beltrán, Enrique, "Alzate y Ramírez, José Antonio" Dictionary of Scientific Biography volume 1. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons 1970. ISBN 0-684-10114-9
  • Codding, Mitchell A., “Perfecting the geography of New Spain: Alzate and the Cartographic legacy of Sigüenza y Góngora,” Colonial Latin American Review, vol 2, 1994, pp. 185–219.
  • Warren, J. Benedict, "An Introductory Survey of Secular Writings in the European Tradition on Colonial Middle America, 1503-1818, item 97, "José Antonio de Alzate y Ramírez, (1737-96)" in Handbook of Middle American Indians, vol. 13. Guide to Ethnohistorical Sources, Howard F. Cline, volume editor. Austin: University of Texas Press 1973, p. 90.
  • Alzate, Jose Antonio de, Memorias y Ensayos. Mexico: Universidad Autonoma de Mexico 1985.
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