(Born: Schnepfenthal, Germany, 27 February 1798; Died: Schnepfenthal, Germany, 13 January 1870) German botanist, zoologist & classical scholar.

Lenz studied classical philology and natural sciences at the Universities of Göttingen, Leipzig and Halle. He became a instructor of ancient languages and natural science at the University of Göttingen.

Biographical references: ADB: 18, 278-9. • DBA: I 754, 158; II 803, 77. • NDB: 14, 225-6 [by K. Mägdefrau]. • Wagenitz, Göttinger Biologen, 1988: 109-10. • WBI.

Mineralogie, 1861

1. German, 1861.
Mineralogie | der | alten Griechen und Römer, | deutsch in Auszügen aus deren Schriften, | nebst Anmerkungen | von | Dr. Harald Othmar Lenz, | Herzögl. Sächs. Professor, Lehrer an der Erziehungsanstalt zu Schnepfenthal. | [ornate rule] | Gotha, | Verlag von E.F. Thienemann. | 1861.

8°: π⁴ 1-12⁸ 13¹; 101l.; [i]-viii, [1]-194 p. Page size: 219 x 136 mm.

Contents: [i-ii], Half title page, "Mineralogie | der | alten Griechen und Römer," verso blank.; [iii-iv], Title page, verso blank.; [v]-viii, Contents and an index to the mineral substances mentioned in the text.; [1]-189, Text.; [190]-194, "Nachträge."

Rare. An expert in Greek and Latin, the author spent part of his lifetime dissecting and categorizing through careful research ancient texts on natural history. These studies were then carefully compiled and eventually published as a series of three books that each related one of the three natural realms back to its early Greek and Roman roots. Lenz' studies in mineralogy are assembled in this work. It discusses with numerous examples, the contributions of 37 ancient authors discovered by the author to have written on minerals and related subjects. The authors are in chronological order beginning with the writtings of Homer at 1000 B.C. and progressing through the era of the Romans. The largest sections cover the writings of Theophrastus and Pliny; however, the value of this study are the obscure references included by Lenz, that in this modern age would have otherwise been lost.

Facsimile reprint, 1966: Mineralogie | ... | Wiesbaden | Dr. Martin Sändig oHG. 8°: [iii]-viii, [1]-194 p.

[iii-iv], Title page, verso "1966 | Unveränderter Neudruck der Ausgabe 1861. | Printed in Germany - Bestell - Nummer 1812."; [v]-viii, Contents and an index to the mineral substances mentioned in the text.; [1]-189, Text.; [190]-194, "Nachträge."

Bibliographical references: BMC: 3, 1090. • Sinkankas, Gemology Bibliography, 1993: no. 3872.

2. German, 1846-75.
Gemeinnützige Naturgeschichte, herausgegeben von O. Burbach. Gotha, E.F. Thienemann's Hofbuchhandlung, 1846-1875.

5 vols. [Vol 1] 8°: [6], 650 p., 12 plates. [Vol 2] 8°: ix, [1], 641, [3] p., 12 plates. [Vol 3] 8°: viii, 518, [2] p., 8 plates. [Vol 4] 8°: viii, 664 p., 10 plates. [Vol 5] 8°: x, [2], 328 p., 8 plates.

Very scarce. This series covers many aspects of natural history including mineralogy. Volume one covers animals, two birds, three amphibians, fish and worms, four plants, and five minerals.

Bibliographical references: NUC. • USGS Library Catalog.

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